This grant supports acquisition of an x-ray diffractometer to support geoscience research and research training that requires the capability for rapid phase identification of fine grained crystalline and polycrystalline materials and crystallographic structure refinements for studies of phase transformations and vacancy substitutions. The instrument will replace an aging (30 yrs old) and obsolete XRD in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. The instrument will serve the research and training needs of multiple faculty at across seven departments at WASH-SL. The lead PIs early career research will immediately benefit from a new XRD for studies of low temperature mineralization and alteration of iron oxides and studies of phyllomanganates, ferrous smectites and uranium phosphates with implications for understanding contaminant fate in aquatic systems. The instrument will support extant PI educational activities including undergraduate training and High-school intern activities.
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Award 1161543 provided funds for the acquisition of a powder X-ray diffractometer (XRD) system for the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University. XRD is an essential analytical tool in Earth Science research as it can determine which minerals are present in a soil, sediment, or rock, as well as their abundances. A Bruker D8 Advance XRD system was acquired, with installation completed in February 2013. This instrument expands the research infrastructure available in the St. Louis metropolitan area, replacing a 30 year old instrument that was the only powder XRD system in the area and was near the end of its working life. In addition, the new instrument enhances the research capabilities in the region as it provides data that is 50-100 time better than could be obtained on the old instrument. A key goal of obtaining the new XRD system was the training of students in the use of analytical techniques. To meet this goal, the staff of the XRD lab has developed a one-on-one training system to teach undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers how to use this technique and to obtain mineral abundances using an advanced technique called Rietveld refinement. The new XRD instrument has been applied to a wide array of studies in the field of Earth science. Topics studied include: the fate of contaminants in soil and groundwater systems, the availability of nutrients, the formation of iron-rich rocks on the ancient Earth during key steps in the development of life, the nature of ore deposition, the trapping of carbon dioxide by reaction with rocks, and the formation of bone and teeth materials. Data collected on this instrument has been presented by students at national and international meetings and published in scientific journals.
