Analyzing natural gas by spontaneous Raman scattering spectroscopy

The use of multipass optical systems as well as the compression of the gaseous test medium to increase the signal intensity of the spontaneous Raman scattering of light has been experimentally studied. A description of a prototype developed for a natural-gas analyzer based on spontaneous Raman scattering spectroscopy is presented. A technique is described for calculating the composition of natural gas from its spectrum. The results are compared with chromatographic-analysis data. (C) 2013 Optical Society of America.