A tutorial review on methods of agricultural product sample pretreatment and target analysis by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Abstract

The frequent occurrence of quality and safety incidents in agricultural products has intensified consumers' concerns. Since laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is a promising, versatile atomic spectrum analysis technique for the analysis of various elements, which has the advantages of simple sample preparation (compared to reference methods), quick analysis, convenient operation and non-contact detection, it has gradually become a research focus in the field of agricultural product inspection. This work reviews applications of LIBS in the analysis of agricultural products in recent years, and aims at sample preparation techniques for various types of agricultural products to improve the quality of analytical data, and the capability of LIBS for qualitative and quantitative analysis of different samples. Finally, LIBS holds potential for real-time elemental analysis of agricultural products and practical applications in precision farming. This could be beneficial for immediate diagnoses of contaminated food and increasing agricultural production while minimizing environmental impacts.