Improved sensitivity on detection of Cu and Cr in liquids using glow discharge technology assisted with LIBS

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy-assisted glow discharge (LIBS-GD) for analysis of elements in liquid was proposed, and it was applied to detect heavy metals in highly sensitive mixed solutions of Cu and Cr. During the experiments of GD and LIBS-GD, the experimental parameters have been optimized and the optimal voltage is 450 V, laser energy is 60 mJ, and the delay time is 4000 ns. Furthermore, the calibration curves of Cu and Cr under GD and LIBS-GD experiments have been established, and the limits of detection (LODs) of Cu and Cr were obtained with the method of GD and LIBS-GD, respectively. The LOD of Cu decreased from 3.37 (GD) to 0.16 mg l⁻¹ (LIBS-GD), and Cr decreased from 3.15 to 0.34 mg l⁻¹. The results prove that the capability of elemental detection under LIBS-GD has improved compared with the GD method. Therefore, LIBS-GD is expected to be developed into a highly sensitive method for sewage detection.