Feasibility study for quantification of lanthanides in LiF–KCl salt by laser induced breakdown spectroscopy

Quantitative analysis of Pr, Nd, Ce, La and Sm were carried out simultaneously in LiF–KCl matrix using laser induced breakdown spectroscopic technique. Two non-interfering analytical emission lines have been identified for each lanthanide and using the internal standard method, the calibration curve is constructed from 0.3 to 5% for Pr, Nd, Ce and La and from 0.3 to 3% for Sm. Both the emission lines showed good regression coefficient (R 2) ranging from 0.9953 to 0.9996. The analytical capability of this method is studied through the correlation uncertainty of measured values with its known value in synthetic samples containing all the lanthanides in equal amount (0.5, 1 and 2%). Low value of correlation uncertainty (less than 10%) confirms that LIBS has a great potential for quantitative analysis of lanthanides in LiF–KCl matrix.