Element selection in automatic qualitative X-ray fluorescence analysis

The problem of automatic element selection and of finding an objective criterion for evaluating their presence is treated. An algorithm is worked out, based on several assumptions which reflect the principal physical laws and the daily experience of the analysts. The certainty for the presence of a given element in the sample is proportional to its coefficient of presence C taking values of between 0 and 1. On the basis of several assumptions made a way of determining the coefficient of presence is proposed. The final expression for C shows that the coefficient of presence of the element is unity only when all its lines of one of the series or of both series together have appeared, when they are free from overlapping, and when the intensity of the background under them is zero. In all other cases the values obtained will vary between zero and unity