MRI: Acquisition of a triple-quadrupole ICP-MS and sample introduction hardware for multidisciplinary research and teaching

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program award will support the acquisition of a modern triple-quadrupole inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (TQ-ICP-MS) and three dedicated sample processing and introduction systems for research and teaching in the Institute of Marine Science’s Marine Analytical Laboratory at the University of California, Santa Cruz. This suite of instruments will enable novel multidisciplinary analytical work by faculty, researchers, and students that will contribute to a more refined understanding of diverse processes in Earth, ocean, and planetary sciences, and environmental toxicology. The new facility will amplify the campus commitment to student social mobility and increased diversity in STEM by providing state-of-the-art instrumentation for practical training in the context of undergraduate and graduate coursework and research. Laboratory PIs actively engage with the AGU Bridge program (Ocean Sciences), NSF-ICER GEOPAths - IMPACT (Earth and Planetary Sciences), and the UCSC STEM Diversity Program, which fund cutting-edge research opportunities for underrepresented students. TQ-ICP-MS systems combine the sensitivity, scan speed, and dynamic range of modern single quadrupole ICP-MS with a quadrupole - reaction cell - quadrupole configuration that enables unambiguous chemical and physical resolution of many of the most challenging isobaric interferences. The three dedicated sample introductions systems include: (1) a gas chromatograph speciation analysis of organometallics (e.g., Hg) in the marine and terrestrial environments; (2) an ESI prepFAST IC for high-throughput metal speciation (e.g. As, Cr, Se) and total metal analysis for environmental toxicology research; and (3) an ESI seaFAST for automated analysis of ultra-trace elements in seawater. The TQ-ICP-MS will be integrated with an existing Teledyne Analyte Excite laser ablation system and Thermo Element XR high-resolution magnetic sector ICP-MS. The laser can be operated with either ICP-MS or with both for split-stream analysis of geological and meteoritic materials for geochemical and petrochronologic research.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.