LIBS: new technology can revolutionize soil analysis
The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) consist of a multielement technique based on atomic emission spectroscopy. On the LIBS technique, the energy of a pulsed laser is focused on the sample surface and induces the formation of plasma, promoting microsampling and excitation of neutral atoms, ions and/or molecules. The radiation emitted on the sample’s surface is focused on the input of a spectrometer for its determination.
LIBS technique is an important tool for quick and direct analysis of soil samples, and it is already been used by modern agriculture.
An equipment named AGLIBS 1.0 was developed in a partnership between Embrapa Instrumentation and private initiative, and it is already available on the market. The AGLIBS 1.0, which is provided with a laser, has the same technology that was used on Rover Curiosity, a NASA robot sent to Mars searching for water.
The AGLIBS 1.0 can process about 1.500 soil samples per day, and provide information about the quantity of organic carbon (sand, silt and clay content) and pH, quickly, ecologically clean and also economically viable. It is incredible, isn’t it?
The quantification of soil attributes by LIBS technology through AGLIBS 1.0 represents a major breakthrough for agriculture, once the agronomic recommendations can almost be obtained in real time. The analysis results are readily digitalized and transferred to a platform that operates online (cloud computing). In this way, the farmer can adjust the fertilizers and correctives doses to be applied to the soil in a more precise way, which represents efficiency and savings to the production.
The evaluation of the soil attributes in real time, instead of many days or weeks, as a traditional method, is especially attractive for precision farming, considering the big volume of soil samples in this type of management.
Did you notice how the technological innovations also could be major allies of soil management? Be sure to follow our page and stay on top of all the news about Soil Science!
