| NSF Org: |
EAR Division Of Earth Sciences |
| Recipient: |
|
| Initial Amendment Date: | February 1, 2022 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | April 19, 2024 |
| Award Number: | 2138789 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Elisabeth Widom
ewidom@nsf.gov (703)292-4658 EAR Division Of Earth Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | February 1, 2022 |
| End Date: | December 31, 2024 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $468,550.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $507,050.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2024 = $38,500.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
|
| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
516 HIGH ST BELLINGHAM WA US 98225-5996 (360)650-2884 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
|
| Primary Place of Performance: |
516 High Street Bellingham WA US 98225-5996 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
|
| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
|
| Parent UEI: |
|
| NSF Program(s): | Instrumentation & Facilities |
| Primary Program Source: |
01002223DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): | |
| Program Element Code(s): |
|
| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
This award will provide funding to Western Washington University (WWU) to upgrade an existing but aging inductively-coupled-plasma-mass spectrometer and associated 213 nm laser (LA-ICP-MS) to a significantly-improved LA-ICP-MS system with an advanced 193 nm laser. This instrument will add exciting new opportunities for faculty research, thesis research of undergraduate and graduate students, and course-based research at a dominantly undergraduate institution that has an outstanding record of well-cited publications involving students. Of the 5 co-principal investigators and 2 senior personnel on this grant, 5 are early career researchers within the first four years of their appointment at WWU and this instrument will significantly enhance their research productivity. The new instrument will support grant-funded research with students that covers topics as broad-ranging as utilization of chemical signatures in volcanic glasses/crystals to discern eruption processes, characterization of deep-Earth materials, timescales and rates of ancient subduction zone processes, transport of plastic nanoparticles in the environment, geochemical signatures in biogenic carbonates as recorders of past climate, ore deposit genesis, abundances of particulate matter pollution, and toxicity of metals in marine and terrestrial systems. The LA-ICP-MS will continue to be used to promote research and education partnerships via outreach to pre-college students, nearby community colleges and entering WWU freshman with an interest in STEM, but this grant specifically develops new collaborations with nearby Whatcom Community College (WCC) and WWU Geology and Environmental Sciences departments to develop course-based undergraduate research experiences and paid summer research experiences for undergraduates.
The ICP-MS and associated laser upgrade will improve and expand the current high quality and broad scope of research, including NSF-funded projects, conducted within the Geology Department and the College. Replacing the current unsupported instrument is essential to ensure the uninterrupted functioning of our facility, and the new Agilent 7900 ICP-MS will provide significantly improved detection limits, count sensitivity, plasma stability, and handling of laser particles. A coupled laser, the RESOlution-SE system, will provide a reliable introductory system for non-aqueous samples, which historically make up half of the total samples analyzed at WWU. Specifically, this system will expand the range of materials that can be analyzed (in terms of both composition and size), minimize fractionation, and significantly enhance precision, detection limits, and sample navigation and programming. It will also provide for an additional LIBS detector permitting periodic table masses at a weight percent to ppm range. These upgrades to the ICP-MS and laser ablation system are necessary for researchers working with nanoparticles and toxins, translucent solid materials (e.g., minerals such as quartz and plagioclase), trace element concentrations below 10 ?g/g, small solid samples (<100 ?m diameter), large solid samples that do not fit in the sample chamber, and more. The intuitive designs and excellent coupling of the Agilent 7900 and RESOlution-SE operational programs will also improve user accessibility and training (dominantly students).
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.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
This project funded the purchase of an analytical instrument that was a key enabler of high-quality teaching and publishable research for both undergraduate and graduate (Masters) students at Western Washington University (WWU), a dominantly undergraduate institution. The instrument purchased is an Agilent 7900 inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) and an accompanying Applied Spectra RESOlution-SE 193 nm excimer laser ablation (LA) system that can analyze both solid and liquid samples for all periodic table masses at a weight percent to ppm range. This new LA-ICP-MS and its improved systems has led to transformative developments in the teaching, research, and outreach done at WWU and has elevated the training of the next generation of geochemical and environmental scientists.
The instrument is housed in the Advanced Materials Science and Engineering Center (AMSEC) where the AMSEC lab manager oversees overall instrument care and maintenance. Co-PI Sas is the professional research staff in charge of solid source laser applications and training of users in collection and processing of data. As
described in previous reports, the instrument was purchased and installed in summer and early fall of 2022. Solution work was available to users in fall 2022 (classwork and research) and, after rigorous testing protocols with standards, the first laser users (student and faculty researchers) began collecting data in spring 2023. External users and collaborators began using the instrument in Summer 2023. We hold a minimum of two class demonstrations per quarter, as at times host community or K-12 outreach demonstrations, in addition to data collection.
In the summer of 2023, we commenced a key piece of our long-term broader impacts objectives: we invited undergraduate students from Whatcom Community College (WCC), one of our major feeder institutions, and Western Washington University (WWU) undergraduates early in their degree programs to do focused research projects using the LAICPMS. We had a total of six students participate. PI DeBari worked with one of these students who collected SEM and LAICPMS data on crystals and glass from tephra from the Hellenic Arc. The resultant data was presented at the 2023 fall AGU where the student was coauthor, and a manuscript is in preparation. Co-PI Montaño worked with two of these students to collect dry and wet deposited aerosol samples surrounding the local Bellingham International Airport. Samples were analyzed for lead and other co-occurring elements, demonstrating the impact of private aircraft utilization of leaded fuels. Co-PI Sas worked with three of these students who collected SEM and LAICPMS data on crystals and glass from lava flow samples from Three Sisters volcanic field. All of these data were presented at the 2023 fall AGU by these students.
In the 2 active years of the grant, research output has been impressive. Eight graduate students have completed theses that utilized data from this instrument, as well as three undergraduate theses. Six more graduate students will complete their theses by the end of summer 2025 that highlight data collected with this instrument. At least 5 more are in progress. Nineteen abstracts for talks or posters at conferences have been published by both student and faculty researchers. One peer-reviewed journal article was accepted for publication (in press) and several more are in the process of being finalized for submission.
The instrument has also facilitated collaborations with other academic institutions and has also created collaborations with local and federal government agencies.
Last Modified: 04/30/2025
Modified by: Susan M DeBari
Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.
