Funds from this Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program grant will support the acquisition and installation of a multicollector inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS) and laser ablation (LA) microprobe at the University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR). The instrumentation will enable researchers at the University of Missouri (MU) to conduct high-precision studies on the subtle variations in isotopic composition present in natural and artificial materials caused by physical, chemical and biological processes. The intellectual merit of this project will be the availability of the new instrumentation to support a wide range of research activities at MU currently being conducted in the fields of social sciences, chemistry, geosciences, environmental sciences, life sciences and others. Some of the specific research topics to be supported will include: studies of human migration patterns, human behavioral evolution, transport of airborne pollutants, studies of melts and fluid inclusions in minerals, the role of volatiles in volcanic systems, petrogenesis of granites, climate evolution, searches for extremophilic microorganisms, and iron bioavailability in plants. Presence of this instrumentation at MU will open up additional areas of research with colleagues from other institutions who already collaborate with MU scientists. The broader impact of this instrumentation will be greater opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to access the most modern and up to date elemental and isotopic analytical techniques. Students and faculty will have be able to design hands-on experiments not possible at another location, to receive training from one of the leading analytical laboratories in the nation, and to be trained on how to interpret the data acquired with the instrumentation. Presence of these new capabilities will attract more graduate students into the research programs at MU.
