With support from the Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program, Dr. Kaveh Jorabchi and his group at Georgetown University are developing new chemical measurement techniques for quantification of fluorine-containing chemicals ("fluorochemicals") in complex samples. These chemicals are largely manmade and are widely used because of their unique chemical and physical properties. Agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, food packaging materials, and flame retardants are a few of these diverse applications. Along with their positive attributes, these compounds also cause persistent environmental pollution and food contamination. Dr. Jorabchi's group is providing new tools and methodologies to detect and quantify fluorochemicals and their reaction products at trace levels. These techniques enable elucidation of reaction pathways, leading to development of safer and more effective chemicals. Dr. Jorabchi's group provides research opportunities for regional high school students, enhancing STEM education and US competitiveness. Industrial collaborations facilitate the research and its eventual commercialization, while enhancing career preparedness of trainees.
The techniques being developed use elemental mass spectrometry for facile quantification of fluorochemicals without compound-specific standards. To address the sensitivity challenges derived from the limited efficiency of thermal mechanisms for ion formation, Dr. Jorabchi's group is developing chemical ionization methods for elemental F analysis. The approach takes advantage of thermally stable neutrals created from fluorinated compounds in a plasma, followed by gas-phase ion-neutral reactions for ionization. By combining the ionization method with liquid chromatography, fluorinated compounds and their reaction products can be readily detected and quantified in a non-targeted fashion.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
