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Image of Journal of Applied Nonlinear Dynamics
ISSN:2325-6192 (print)
ISSN:2325-6206 (online)
Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management
António Mendes Lopes (editor), Jiazhong Zhang(editor)
António Mendes Lopes (editor)

University of Porto, Portugal

Email: aml@fe.up.pt

Jiazhong Zhang (editor)

School of Energy and Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province 710049, China

Fax: +86 29 82668723 Email: jzzhang@mail.xjtu.edu.cn

Measurement of Alkali Metal in Fuel Based on Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy

Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management 14(3) (2026) 517--527 | DOI:10.5890/JEAM.2026.09.010

Haijian Li$^1$, Chao Chen$^1$, Chi Li$^2$, Yuxiang Zhou$^2$, Zhenzhen Wang$^2$, Jianhua Yi$^{1}$, Wengang Qu$^1$

$^{1}$ National Key laboratory of Energetic Materials, Xi'an Modern Chemistry Research Institute, Xi'an 710065, China

$^{2}$ State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China

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Abstract

Alkali metals (K, Na) in alkali-containing fuels will be released through gasification and combustion during the combustion process. The alkali metals react with oxygen and water vapor in the air to generate oxides or hydroxides, increasing the concentration of particulate matter in the atmosphere. The condensing and depositing alkali metals compounds cause corrosion problems, and affect the normal operation and safety of thermal equipment. Therefore, it is particularly important to study the detection technology for alkali metals. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is widely used in the field of solid fuel detection. In this study, the influence of sample pretreatment methods, laser energy and delay time on the spectral characteristics of alkali metals in mixed samples was studied by LIBS. The experimental results show that as sample is powder, the element distribution is uniform, which is helpful for rapid on-line detection. When the sample is a tablet, the ablation amount of sample is reduced, which reduces the influence of the self-absorption effect of the spectral line. Based on the experimental results of the mixed samples, the solid propellant containing potassium salt was detected. When the laser energy is 60 mJ and the delay time is 1000 ns, the K element in five propellant samples is quantitatively analyzed, and the model shows high analysis accuracy.

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