Direct measurement of molten salt compositions in pyroprocessing via laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Abstract

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) has been studied as a promising technology to analyze the composition of molten salts in pyroprocessing. However, reliable data collection has struggled due to the salt splashing effect during LIBS measurement. Furthermore, although fluctuations in the salt level have been reported, methods for overcoming this issue during LIBS measurement have not been studied. To address these concerns, this study developed a protection system to protect the optics from splashing salt, as well as methodologies for overcoming salt fluctuation. The developed gas protective layer system provided more repeatable results than previous studies. The focused measurements were selected using acoustic information and both focused and defocused measurement were used to train the prediction model to overcome salt fluctuation. Therefore, the developed protective layer system and overcoming salt fluctuation methodologies in this study will help the practical application of LIBS for the direct measurement of molten salts.