Quantitative Analysis Of Trace Elements Research Articles

Alkali Trace Elements Observed by MarSCoDe LIBS at Zhurong Landing Site on Mars: Quantitative Analysis and Its Geological Implications

AbstractMars Surface Composition Detector (MarSCoDe) is one of the important payloads carried by the Zhurong rover, China's first Mars exploration mission Tianwen‐1. The laser‐induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument of MarSCoDe is mainly used to detect major and trace elements on the surface of Mars. The quantitative analysis of alkali trace elements, namely lithium (Li), strontium (Sr), and rubidium (Rb), holds significance in unraveling the geological evolution of the Zhurong landing site. This study focuses on establishing univariate calibration models using MarSCoDe LIBS spectra from 84 samples tested in the ground laboratory. The accuracy of these models, within a few parts per million (ppm), was subsequently validated through the analysis of 12 onboard MarSCoDe Calibration Targets (MCCTs). With these models, Li, Sr, and Rb concentrations in the surface targets during the initial 300 sols (Martian days) traverse were determined. These concentrations ranged from 6 to 18, 106–628, and 22–87 ppm, respectively. Our results suggest that Li, Sr, and Rb are mainly related to the igneous rock components in the rocks and soils at the Zhurong landing site. The major secondary minerals in MarSCoDe scientific targets are likely small amounts of sulfates, which appear to have formed from the acidic weathering of recent surface brine. Clay minerals are likely either absent or very sparse in the scientific targets. The surface igneous materials at the landing site likely have originated from the most recent lava flow during the Amazonian epoch.

Spectroscopic assessment and quantitative analysis of the trace element composition of vegetable additives to meat products

In this scientific work, using the method of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), the spectra of beef samples and impurities in meat products, namely, banana, pineapple, kiwi, bergamot, poria coconut, Chinese angelica, chicken blood vine, were measured by using developed experimental devices. The purpose of the research was to evaluate the qualitative characteristics of additives to meat semi-finished products for the potential formation of the desired properties of the products due to the analysis of the received spectrograms of trace elements of the samples when applying the LIBS method, quantitative analysis for processing the received information. The determined values of the electron temperature of the plasma, the electron density of the used raw material samples, and the assessment of the local heat balance were used as evaluation criteria. When processing the obtained data, the characteristics of the laser-induced plasma surface of the presented samples were analyzed; the electron temperature and electron density were determined, and a quantitative analysis of trace elements was carried out. LIBS technology allows rapid real-time monitoring and qualitative analysis of trace elements online and over long distances. During the research, it turned out that quantitative analysis requires further study and optimisation of experimental conditions, such as pre-treatment of samples. These conditions optimise defocusing, double laser pulse, and sample temperature, which increases the signal/noise ratio of all spectral lines. The combination of fluorescence spectroscopy and Raman technology enables higher detection sensitivity and better molecule control, creating a quantitative analysis method model that can reduce matrix effects and overcome the self-absorption effect. Among the difficulties of using LIBS technology, several elements can be noted online simultaneously, compared to Raman. The combination of spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy can obtain more comprehensive information about the composition of materials, which can become a potential platform for monitoring trace elements in food products.

Multielement simultaneous quantitative analysis of trace elements in stainless steel via full spectrum laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) instruments are increasingly recognized as valuable tools for detecting trace metal elements due to their simplicity, rapid detection, and ability to perform simultaneous multi-element analysis. Traditional LIBS modeling often relies on empirical or machine learning-based feature band selection to establish quantitative models. In this study, we introduce a novel approach—simultaneous multi-element quantitative analysis based on the entire spectrum, which enhances model establishment efficiency and leverages the advantages of LIBS. By logarithmically processing the spectra and quantifying the cognitive uncertainty of the model, we achieved remarkable predictive performance (R2) for trace elements Mn, Mo, Cr, and Cu (0.9876, 0.9879, 0.9891, and 0.9841, respectively) in stainless steel. Our multi-element model shares features and parameters during the learning process, effectively mitigating the impact of matrix effects and self-absorption. Additionally, we introduce a cognitive error term to quantify the cognitive uncertainty of the model. The results suggest that our approach has significant potential in the quantitative analysis of trace elements, providing a reliable data processing method for efficient and accurate multi-task analysis in LIBS. This methodology holds promising applications in the field of LIBS quantitative analysis.

Single-Slice XRF Mapping of Light Elements in Frozen-Hydrated Allium schoenoprasum via a Self-Absorption-Corrected Hyperspectral Tomographic Reconstruction Approach.

3D and 2D-cross-sectional X-ray fluorescence analysis of biological material is a powerful tool to image the distribution of elements and to understand and quantify metal homeostasis and the distribution of anthropogenic metals and nanoparticles with minimal preparation artifacts. Using tomograms recorded on cryogenically prepared leaves of Allium schoenoprasum, the cross-sectional distribution of physiologically relevant elements like calcium, potassium, manganese, and zinc could be tomographically reconstructed by peak fitting followed by a conventional maximum-likelihood algorithm with self-absorption correction to reveal the quantitative cross-sectional element distribution. If light elements such as S and P are located deep in the sample compared to the escape depth of their characteristic X-ray fluorescence lines, the quantitative reconstruction becomes inaccurate. As a consequence, noise is amplified to a magnitude where it might be misinterpreted as actual concentration. We show that a tomographic MCA hyperspectral reconstruction in combination with a self-absorption correction allows for fitting of the XRF spectra directly in real space, which significantly improves the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the light elements compared to the conventional method as noise and artifacts in the tomographic reconstruction are reduced. This reconstruction approach can substantially improve the quantitative analysis of trace elements as it allows the fitting of summed voxel spectra in anatomical regions of interest. The presented method can be applied to XRF 2D single-slice tomography data and 3D tomograms and is particularly relevant for, but not limited to, biological material in order to help retrieve self-absorption corrected quantitative reconstructions of the spatial distribution of light elements and ultra-trace-elements.

Evaluation of medicinal plants using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) combined with chemometric techniques.

Medicinal plants play a vital role in herbal medical field and allopathic medicine field industry. Chemical and spectroscopic studies of Taraxacum officinale, Hyoscyamus niger, Ajuga bracteosa, Elaeagnus angustifolia, Camellia sinensis, and Berberis lyceum are conducted in this paper by using a 532-nm Nd:YAG laser in an open air environment. These medicinal plant's leaves, roots, seed, and flowers are used to treat a range of diseases by the locals. It is crucial to be able to distinguish between beneficial and detrimental metal elements in these plants. We demonstrated how various elements are categorized and how roots, leaves, seeds and flowers of same plants differ from each other on the basis of elemental analysis. Furthermore, for classification purpose, different classification models, partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), k-nearest neighbors (kNN), and principal component analysis (PCA) are used. We found silicon (Si), aluminum (Al), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), manganese (Mn), phosphorous (P), and vanadium (V) in all of the medicinal plant samples with a molecular form of carbon and nitrogen band. We detected Ca, Mg, Si, and P as primary components in all of the plant samples, as well as V, Fe, Mn, Al, and Ti as essential medicinal metals, and additional trace elements like Si, Sr, and Al. The result's findings show that the PLS-DA classification model with single normal variate (SNV) preprocessing method is the most effective classification model for different types of plant samples. The average correct classification rate obtained for PLS-DA with SNV is 95%. Moreover, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was successfully employed to perform rapid, sensitive, and quantitative trace element analysis on medicinal herbs and plant samples.

Quantitative analysis of trace elements in technological materials using online-laser ablation of solids in liquids (online-LASIL)

To overcome the challenges of the 21st century, the demand for novel materials which outperforms the limits of previous material classes is high. However, the elemental composition determines crucial material properties from the bulk stoichiometry down to ultra-trace impurities. Therefore, a precise analytical characterization is inevitable to establish a connection between composition and function.For this purpose, conventional solid sampling techniques could be applied. However, matrix-matched standards are indispensable for quantitative analysis and are often unavailable in the case of technological materials. To overcome this limitation online-Laser Ablation of Solids in Liquids (online-LASIL) has been proposed recently, which combines the advantages of solution-based analysis and solid sampling techniques. However, this technique has only been applied to determine sample stoichiometry.In this work, major improvements of the online-LASIL approach were reported by the controllable segmentation of the carrier solution, leading to an improved washout behavior of the ablated material, enabling the quantitative investigation at trace levels. The accuracy of this improved measurement setup is validated by the quantitative analysis of trace elements in the standard reference material (SRM) NIST612. To demonstrate the applicability of this method, silicon carbide (SiC), a wide bandgap semiconductor, was analyzed. With the improved online-LASIL method, an Al-doped region, which is only constant for the first 250 nm, was successfully quantified.

Research progress on the analysis of active ingredients and elements in Fritillaria ussuriensis Bulbus

Fritillaria ussuriensis Bulbus, a genuine medicinal material of Northeast China, is the dry bulb of Fritillaria ussuriensis Maxim. It contains various active ingredients, such as alkaloids, alkaloids glycosides, adenosines, polysaccharides, trace elements and so forth. It has antitussive, eliminating phlegm, antiasthmatic, antiulcer, antiplatelet aggregation, and anti-inflammatory. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of alkaloids, polysaccharides, nucleosides, and trace elements in Fritillaria ussuriensis Bulbus were reviewed, which is helpful for its cultivation and accurate application, and would provide a new choice for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Differences of tuffaceous components dissolution and their impact on physical properties in sandstone reservoirs: A case study on Paleogene Wenchang Formation in Huizhou-Lufeng area, Zhu I Depression, Pearl River Mouth Basin, China

The element geochemical characteristics and diagenetic alteration products of tuffaceous components in sandstone reservoirs of Paleogene Wenchang Formation in typical subsags of the Huizhou-Lufeng area of the Zhu I Depression, Pearl River Mouth Basin, were identified through microscopic analysis and quantitative analysis of main and trace elements. The impacts of dissolution of different tuffaceous components on physical properties of reservoirs were discussed through quantitative characterization of reservoir physical properties. The results show that there are mainly four types of tuffaceous components in the study area, which are acidic, intermediate, basic and alkaline tuffaceous components. The acidic tuffaceous components evolved in a process of strong alteration and weak dissolution of alteration products, with a large amount of kaolinite precipitated during alteration to disenable the improvement of porosity and permeability. The intermediate and alkaline tuffaceous components evolved in a process of strong dissolution of tuffaceous components and strong alteration of residual tuffaceous components; the dissolution of tuffaceous components created intergranular pores, but the alteration products such as autogenic quartz, apatite and illite deteriorated the pore structure; ultimately, the dissolution of tuffaceous components resulted in the increase of porosity but no increase of permeability of the reservoir. The basic tuffaceous components dominantly evolved in a process of dissolution of tuffaceous components to strong dissolution of alteration products; both tuffaceous components between particles and laumontite generated from alteration can be strongly dissolved to create pores; thus, the dissolution of tuffaceous components can significantly increase the physical properties of the reservoir.

Quantitative analysis of elemental concentrations of aluminum alloys using calibration-free femtosecond laser-ablation spark-induced breakdown spectroscopy

In this work, the calibration-free (CF) methodology combined with femtosecond laser-ablation spark-induced breakdown spectroscopy (fs LA-SIBS) was applied for the quantitative analysis of elements in aluminum alloy. A femtosecond laser (800 nm) operated at a repetition rate of 1 kHz with a pulse width of 35 fs was used as the laser-ablation source, and the plasma emission was enhanced by the spark discharge. Spectra were acquired using a compact fiber spectrometer coupled to a charge-coupled device and recorded at 200–500 nm. The aluminum alloy sample was mounted on a two-dimensional motion platform, and the effect of the sample moving speed on the spectral intensity was investigated. To evaluate the analysis performance of this technique, five standard aluminum alloy samples with certified elemental concentrations were tested. The average estimated electron density from these five transitions was (1.5 ± 0.3) × 1017 cm−3, which was determined by fitting the ion spectrum of Al II (281.62 nm) with Lorentz fitting. The plasma temperature was calculated to be 6300 ± 300 K using Saha–Boltzmann plots under the local thermodynamic equilibrium state. Trace elements with the content of <0.1% were detected by the proposed technique, and the analysis error of Al was <0.3%. This study shows that the CF fs LA-SIBS technique can be employed for quantitative analysis of major, minor, and trace elements in multi-composition alloys.

Quantitative analysis of minor and trace elements in blood serum of dairy cattle (Bos taurus) by WDXRF

&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Assessment of heavy metal content in biological fluids is essential to determine human and animal health as a result of exposure to contaminated environments, food, and water. WDXRF is a non-destructive method that involves no chemical treatments. It is possible to perform fast chemical analysis without producing hazardous waste and uses a small sample volume (± 50 mL), which is useful to veterinary usage. Therefore, the aim of this work was to implement an alternative method for minor and trace elements in blood serum samples of dairy cattle (Bos taurus) using WDXRF. It was implemented for the determination of Al, Cr, Co, Fe, Cu, As, and Hg, and the method was evaluated by comparing WDXRF and ICP-OES results of a set of 14 blood serum samples of dairy cattle using principal component analysis (PCA). Results of WDXRF and ICP-OES were statistically equivalent to all analyzed elements, except for Fe and Al, which were still comparable. WDXRF proved to be a suitable alternative methodology for heavy metal detection in animal blood serum samples due to the low sample volume. The results of this study enable a new and fast method for veterinary internal medicine, which requires a technique that quickly detects animals with a high concentration of toxic elements to assure the correct protocols to prevent the animal's death.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D;

Processes of Enrichment of Trace Metals for High-Tech Applications in Hydrothermal Veins of the Ruhr Basin and the Rhenish Massif, Germany

ABSTRACTThe increasing demand for high-tech trace elements supports the need for systematic investigations of their primary occurrences. Mineralogy and trace element characteristics of hydrothermal base-metal veins from the Ruhr Basin (Ruhrgebiet) and the Rhenish Massif (Bergisches Land) in Germany were studied by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence mapping, laser ablation-ICP-mass spectrometry, and electron microprobe analyses. Quantitative trace element analysis proves elevated concentrations of Ge and Ga in sphalerite from the Ruhrgebiet. In addition to about 6 Mt of sphalerite-dominated ore, a potential of about 10 t of Ge is indicated to be concentrated in the Auguste Victoria and Graf-Moltke base-metal deposits in the Ruhrgebiet. Assessments on physicochemical fluid properties and metal sources using vitrinite reflectance analysis and host rock investigation indicate a genetic link between the Carboniferous carbonaceous rocks (hosting a number of coal seams) and significant trace metal enrichment in the veins. Gallium enrichment, outlining primary growth zones in ore stage 1 sphalerite, is facilitated by the alteration of Al-bearing minerals in adjacent host rocks due to intense fluid/rock interaction. Reduced Ga and very low In concentrations in ore stage 2 may reflect sealed fluid pathways or changes in the fluid properties. The high level of organic matter in the system probably supported enrichment of Ge in the hydrothermal fluids. The constantly high levels of fixation of Ge in sector zoning patterns of the sphalerite during both ore stages indicate a continuous supply. Elevated contents of Sb together with Cu, As, and Pb in sectors of the sphalerite grains point to a local enrichment of nanometer-scale inclusions of sulfosalt-like phases. Sphalerite of both districts and even of the two ore stages in the Ruhrgebiet shows variations in δ34S isotope compositions due to varying sulfur sources. Both the host rock composition and the presence of organic matter contributed to the trace metal enrichment in the Ruhrgebiet base-metal sulfides as compared to the low contents typical of base-metal ore from the Bergisches Land.

Quantitative analysis of trace elements in human hair based on LIPS

Based on Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy ( LIPS), combined with Calibration-Free Method ( CFM),the content of trace elements in human hair was quantitatively analyzed. a LIPS spectrum acquisition system was established, which was composed of 1064 nm ns pulsed laser, HR4000optical fiber spectrometer and supporting optical components, and the aluminum alloy standard sample was introduced to calibrate the content. The plasma spectrum of the hair samples induced by laser with 15 ns pulse width was detected, the corrected spectral information was extracted, the content of hair trace elements was calculated by the CFM. The result shows that the content of hair trace elements can be analyzed efficiently and quickly through the CF-LIPS.

Quantitative analysis of trace elements (vanadium, sodium, and calcium) in petroleum coke using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy with binder

The concentrations of Vanadium (V), Sodium (Na), and Calcium (Ca) have a great effect on the quality of petroleum coke. In this work, the trace elements of V, Na, and Ca in petroleum coke were determined by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). First, petroleum coke powder was mixed with the stearic acid binder and pressed into pellets to achieve a high signal repeatability. Then, to optimize the percentage of the binder in the pressed pellets, the influence of stearic acid on LIBS signal was studied in detail. When the stearic accounted for 30 w% in the mixed-pressed pellets, the plasma morphology and spectral signal were more stable. Finally, the linear calibration curves were plotted by fitting the emission line intensities and the element concentrations. In addition, the results achieved through this method were compared with other conventional methods. The determination coefficients of calibration curves of V, Na, and Ca elements all exceed 0.99. The relative standard deviations of the predicted values of V, Na, and Ca concentrations were 3.65%, 4.38%, and 5.53%, respectively. We also calculated the limit of detection of the V, Na, and Ca elements, which were 1.19 mg/kg, 0.41 mg/kg, and 0.51 mg/kg, respectively. The experimental results demonstrate that LIBS detection is an accurate and precision method for the determination of trace elements in petroleum coke.

Quantitative analysis of trace elements of silver disturbed by pulse pile up based on energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) technique

The detection of trace elements of silver in refined copper based on the portable energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer was disturbed severely by pulse pile-up, so quantitative analysis had a high method detection limit and low accuracy. A new approach was provided to reduce the appearance of the pulse pile-up and lower the detection limit. A robust quantitative model was established. The coefficient of determination R2 of the model was lifted to 0.9927 from 0.9338; the detection limit was reduced to 0.0034 wt%. This model can be used in the metallurgical industry, power plants, and the study of micro-structure enhancement mechanisms.

Medical Applications of a Nuclear Reactor

Nuclear reactors are usually associated with the production of energy, but some reactors, including the reactor facility of the University of Technology Delft, The Netherlands, are being used for scientific research. This review describes the current possible applications of such a research facility in medicine. This concerns in the first place the production of various nuclides and chemical carriers, which are now widely used in clinical medicine. Both α and β emitters can be effective in the treatment of tumors and metastases, while γ-emission allows imaging of organs and activity of biological processes. A less well-known application of a research reactor is instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA), a technique for qualitative and quantitative multi-element analysis of major, rare and trace elements in all kinds of materials, including those from human origin such as blood, nails, hair and tissue samples. In contrast to mass spectrometry, INAA is not restricted to measurement in small samples, since even large samples up to kilograms can be analyzed. This is especially of importance when an element is not distributed homogeneously in materials. INAA is also used in biomonitoring to measure the burden of toxic chemical compounds and elements in biological substances. A promising development is the use of enriched stable isotopes, an attractive alternative for the application of radioactive tracers in the study of the bioavailability and distribution of essential trace elements and metals in the human body.

Cell specific quantitative iron mapping on brain slices by immuno-\xb5PIXE in healthy elderly and Parkinson\u2019s disease

Iron is essential for neurons and glial cells, playing key roles in neurotransmitter synthesis, energy production and myelination. In contrast, high concentrations of free iron can be detrimental and contribute to neurodegeneration, through promotion of oxidative stress. Particularly in Parkinson’s disease (PD) changes in iron concentrations in the substantia nigra (SN) was suggested to play a key role in degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in nigrosome 1. However, the cellular iron pathways and the mechanisms of the pathogenic role of iron in PD are not well understood, mainly due to the lack of quantitative analytical techniques for iron quantification with subcellular resolution. Here, we quantified cellular iron concentrations and subcellular iron distributions in dopaminergic neurons and different types of glial cells in the SN both in brains of PD patients and in non-neurodegenerative control brains (Co). To this end, we combined spatially resolved quantitative element mapping using micro particle induced X-ray emission (µPIXE) with nickel-enhanced immunocytochemical detection of cell type-specific antigens allowing to allocate element-related signals to specific cell types. Distinct patterns of iron accumulation were observed across different cell populations. In the control (Co) SNc, oligodendroglial and astroglial cells hold the highest cellular iron concentration whereas in PD, the iron concentration was increased in most cell types in the substantia nigra except for astroglial cells and ferritin-positive oligodendroglial cells. While iron levels in astroglial cells remain unchanged, ferritin in oligodendroglial cells seems to be depleted by almost half in PD. The highest cellular iron levels in neurons were located in the cytoplasm, which might increase the source of non-chelated Fe3+, implicating a critical increase in the labile iron pool. Indeed, neuromelanin is characterised by a significantly higher loading of iron including most probable the occupancy of low-affinity iron binding sites. Quantitative trace element analysis is essential to characterise iron in oxidative processes in PD. The quantification of iron provides deeper insights into changes of cellular iron levels in PD and may contribute to the research in iron-chelating disease-modifying drugs.

Abatement of organic and inorganic pollutants from drinking water by using commercial and laboratory-synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles

ZnO nanoparticles have been synthesized and applied for the removal of different environmental pollutants in the present study. Combustion method is used for the preparation of ZnO NPs. X-Ray diffraction pattern reveals the crystallinity of the nanoparticles, where SEM and TEM images displayed that ZnO NPs were of size less than 100 nm and nearly spherical in shape. UV–Vis and IR spectra revealed the formation of ZnO NPs. Adsorption and advanced oxidation processes were employed for the removal/degradation of trace elements/pesticide. UV reactor containing 1 UV rod of 11 W (Philips) was used for the photocatalytic degradation of pesticide. ICP–OES and GC–MS techniques were used for the further quantitative analysis of trace elements and OP pesticide—monocrotophos, respectively. The analysis shows the 88% degradation of monocrotophos when subjected to UV light in the reaction chamber for 120 min at a pH 4 when 2 g of nanocatalyst is applied. However, the removal of trace element Arsenic shows linear adsorption as compared to Cd and Se. The removal efficiency of ZnO nanoparticles for Cd and Se was 36% and 64%, respectively, after 120 min. The synthesized nanoparticles are more effective than the commercially available ones.

Rapid quantitative analysis of trace elements in plutonium alloys using a handheld laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) device coupled with chemometrics and machine learning.

We present the first reported quantification of trace elements in plutonium via a portable laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) device and demonstrate the use of chemometric analysis to enhance the handheld device's sensitivity and precision. Quantification of trace elements such as iron and nickel in plutonium metal via LIBS is a challenging problem due to the complex nature of the plutonium optical emission spectra. While rapid analysis of plutonium alloys has been demonstrated using portable LIBS devices, such as the SciAps Z300, their detection limits for trace elements are severely constrained by their achievable pulse power and length, light collection optics, and detectors. In this paper, analytical methods are evaluated as a means to circumvent the detection constraints. Three chemometric methods often used in analytical spectroscopy are evaluated; principal component regression, partial least-squares regression, and artificial neural networks. These models are evaluated based on goodness-of-fit metrics, root mean-squared error, and their achievable limits of detection (LoDs). Partial least squares proved superior for determining content of iron and nickel in plutonium metal, yielding LoDs of 15 and 20 ppm, respectively. These results of identifying the undesirable trace elements in plutonium components are critical for applications such as fabricating radioisotope thermoelectric generators or nuclear fuel.

Quantitative analysis of trace elements in bismuth brass with high repetition rate laser-ablation spark-induced breakdown spectrum

Bismuth brass has very good mechanical properties and is friendly to environment. Therefore, it can be widely used in different fields. In order to realize the convenient, rapid and sensitive elemental analysis of trace elements in bismuth brass, fiber laser based high repetition rate laser-ablation spark-induced breakdown spectroscopy (HRR LA-SIBS) is developed. In the experiments, a compact fiber laser operated at 5 kHz pulse repetition rate is used to ablate the sample and produce plasma, and the spark discharge is used to further break down the ablated sample and enhance the plasma emission for sensitive elemental analysis. A compact fiber-optic spectrometer coupled with non-intensified charge-coupled device (CCD) is used to record the spectra. Bismuth, lead and tin in several bismuth brass standard samples are quantitatively analyzed. The plasma temperature is determined to be about 7962 ± 300 K by using the Boltzmann plots of copper, zinc and tin elements; the electron density is determined to be about 1.049 × 10&lt;sup&gt;–17&lt;/sup&gt; cm&lt;sup&gt;–3&lt;/sup&gt; based on the Stark broadening of Cu (I) 510.47 nm analytical line. The plasma is determined to be in local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) state according to McWhirter criterion as well as appended criteria for transient plasma. Under the present experimental condition, the calibration curves of bismuth, lead and tin in bismuth brass are built with fitting goodness of higher than 95%. The detection limits of bismuth, lead and tin are determined to be 25.5 ppm, 64.2 ppm and 316.5 ppm, respectively. The weak transition probability of tin atoms leads to worse detection limit of tin than the scenarios of bismuth and lead. The ways to further improve the analytical sensitivity and minimize system dimensions are discussed in this article. It is demonstrated that high repetition rate laser-ablation spark-induced breakdown spectrometer based on compact fiber laser as well as compact fiber-optic spectrometer can be used to realize the convenient, rapid and sensitive elemental analysis of trace elements in bismuth brass. This study is also helpful in analyzing the trace harmful elements, including bismuth, lead and tin in high temperature alloys with HRR LA-SIBS. In comparison with laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), the HRR LA-SIBS technique has several intrinsic advantages, such as fast spectral data collection speed, cost-effective system and low continuum background and so on. This technique is very useful in implementing the elemental analysis of different alloy samples and can be potentially used in metallurgical industry in the future.

An AAS Dependent Method for Quantitative Analysis of Essential Trace Elements from Blood Samples of Pakistani Female Breast Cancer Patients

Breast cancer is the second leading cancer in the world. The long-term exposure of some metallic compounds induces different forms of cancer, including breast cancer. Trace elements are essential metals for the physiological functions of the cell on a molecular level and also contribute in treatment of many diseases. The aim of study was to compare the level of essential trace elements, sodium, potassium, calcium, iron, and zinc in breast cancer patients with normal healthy adult women. Total forty-five patients (age range from 25 - 73 years) were included in this study and divided into three groups according to three different stages of breast cancer including tumor-II, tumor-III and tumor-IV. Blood was collected from all participants after taking history, clinical data and taking consent. However, about fifteen non-cancer healthy women in age range from 26 - 69 years were subjected to this study. The elemental concentrations were determined through atomic absorption spectrophotometer subsequent to microwave-induced acid digestion. The results of Na, K, Zn, Fe, Ca, were observed to decrease in blood samples of breast cancer patients as compared to non-cancer subjects. The results are reliable with other numerous literature reported studies, the efficiency, and deficiency of these trace metals may contribute an important role in the progress of breast cancer.