Warner Cribb

cribb@mtsu.edu

Ron Zawislak

Geosciences

Discipline specific equipment

KOM 102C (XRF), Forrest Hall Annex East (ICPMS)

N/A

N/A

The X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS) labs provide students access to laboratory instruments used to conduct high precision chemical element analyses of natural and synthetic materials. The labs primarily are used to train undergraduate students in Geosciences (GEOL) and Concrete Industry Management (CIM) to apply XRF and ICPMS to chemical studies of water, rocks, minerals, soils, and construction materials. The labs also are open to undergraduate and graduate students in all science and engineering majors for research projects requiring chemical element analyses. Students enrolled in six CIM and GEOL undergraduate courses conduct scheduled exercises in the XRF and ICPMS labs. Over the past three semesters, 284 students were enrolled in these courses (931 student credit hours). As student need for lab time increases, it is difficult for faculty to effectively teach and supervise all students during scheduled lab periods. This proposal requests funds to address increased student need for XRF and ICPMS lab time through: (1) upgrade of the XRF sample preparation lab and installation of a new XRF operating computer, XRF operating software, and an automatic XRF sample loader (The XRF has received no upgrades since the 1999-2000 academic year.); (2) purchase of additional ICPMS mechanical parts to enable faculty to more efficiently instruct hands-on lab exercises covering ICPMS set-up, maintenance, and chemical element analyses. (Notes: (a) Funds to purchase both the ICPMS and XRF were provided by the National Science Foundation. (b) The proposal budget includes installation costs for the XRF computer, software and auto-sampler upgrades, but no XRF or ICPMS warranties or service contracts.)