Comparison of Elemental Analysis Techniques for the Characterization of Commercial Alloys

Better quality control for alloy manufacturing and sorting of post-consumer scraps relies heavily on the accurate determination of their chemical composition. In recent decades, analytical techniques, such as X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), and spark optical emission spectroscopy (spark-OES), found widespread use in the metal industry, though only a few studies were published about the comparison of these techniques for commercially available alloys. Hence, we conducted a study on the evaluation of four analytical techniques (energy-dispersive XRF, wavelength-dispersive XRF, LIBS, and spark-OES) for the determination of metal sample composition. It focuses on the quantitative analysis of nine commercial alloys, representing the three most important alloy classes: copper, aluminum, and steel. First, spark-OES is proven to serve as a validation technique in the use of certified alloy reference samples. Following an examination of the lateral homogeneity by XRF, the results of the techniques are compared, and reasons for deviations are discussed. Finally, a more general evaluation of each technique with its capabilities and limitations is given, taking operation-relevant parameters, such as measurement speed and calibration effort, into account. This study shall serve as a guide for the routine use of these methods in metal producing and recycling industries.