Determination of diffusion profiles of silver ions in soda-lime-silica glass by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

A nondestructive method based on X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry is presented for the determination of concentration-depth profiles in the top layer of flat solid samples. The method was tested in the determination of the interdiffusion coefficient of silver and sodium ions in soda-lime–silica glass. Calculations are based on semi-infinite diffusion with constant boundary concentration of the silver ion. The diffusion coefficient found at 633 K for penetration times between 300 and 3600 s ranged between 1.1×10−10 and 1.6×10−10 cm2 s−1.