[Development of a Laser On-Line Cement Raw Material Analysis Equipment]

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Chemical Engineering

Background:

• Cement quality is critical for construction safety.
• Traditional cement raw material analysis is time-consuming, delaying production adjustments.
• Rapid detection methods are needed to ensure consistent cement quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate an online analysis equipment for timely elemental composition determination of cement raw materials.
• To assess the accuracy and precision of the developed system compared to conventional methods.

Main Methods:

• Utilized laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) for real-time elemental analysis.
• Integrated a LIBS detection system with a pneumatic system for online measurement.
• Employed full spectrum normalization and support vector machine for quantitative analysis of Al2O3, CaO, Fe2O3, MgO, and SiO2.

Main Results:

• Achieved maximum absolute errors of 0.34% for Al2O3, 0.35% for CaO, 0.07% for Fe2O3, 0.14% for MgO, and 0.55% for SiO2.
• Demonstrated that LIBS equipment results align with conventional chemical methods.
• Showcased measurement precision comparable to X-ray fluorescence spectrometry.

Conclusions:

• The developed LIBS equipment enables real-time measurement of cement raw material composition without sample preparation.
• This technology can guide timely adjustments in raw material proportioning, ensuring cement quality.
• LIBS is a promising technique for elemental composition determination in the cement industry.