Bruker M4TornadoPlus Super Light Element micro-XRF spectrometer is capable of detecting elements from C to U in the periodic table and is primarily used to determine chemical composition and produce elemental distribution maps of geological materials in hand specimen, drill core, thin section, single crystals and pressed powders. Standard-less semi-quantification (Na to U) of spot and map spectra are possible using fundamental parameters methods. Quantification calibrated to matrix matched standards is also possible for many geological samples. Academic collaboration and industry contracts are welcome.
Contact: Erin Adlakha
A Jobin-Yvon Horiba LabRam HR confocal Raman microscope equipped with a 100mW 532 nm (green) Nd-YAG diode laser (Laser Quantum) and a 300mW 785 nm (red-near IR) diode laser (laser spot sizes of ~2-3 microns) and a Synapse 1024 x 256 pixel CCD detector. The Raman spectrometer is capable of both spot analysis and mapping.
Contact: Jacob Hanley, Mitchell Kerr
3D printing and plotting equipment
Contact: Mitchell Kerr, Simone Booker
Olympus BX51 visible (brightfield/darkfield)-DIC Nomarski-UV microscope with (i) MDS600 motorized X-Y Linkam fluid inclusion microthermometry stage and (ii) TS1500 Linkam high temperature melt inclusion stage for observations in visible and ultraviolet light from -190°C to 1500°C. This microscope is used for studying fluid and melt inclusions in transparent minerals.Contact: Jacob Hanley
Olympus BX53 visible/IR (to 1800 nm) microscope with FTIR600 Linkam fluid inclusion microthermometry stage for observations in visible and infrared from -190°C to 600°C. This microscope is used for studying fluid inclusions in opaque minerals that are IR transmissive.Contact: Jacob Hanley
Thermcraft clamshell furnaces or controllers and 500 cm3 Rene/Inconel reaction vessels with automated P-T-fO2 monitoring up to 400°C and 1 kbar. This technology is used for hydrothermal experimental studies of metal solubility, mineral reactions, and fluid inclusion synthesis.Contact: Jacob Hanley
Wasson ECE-Agilent 7890A gas chromatograph with TCD and 2 FID and 4 stainless steel rock crushing pistons for analyzing volatiles released from crushed rock samples (down to 0.1 g sample) for H2O, CO2, H2S, COS, and hydrocarbons (aliphatics, olefin and paraffin, xylenes, benzene) up to C6 (routinely quantified) and to C9 (qualitative) to a detection limit of 30 ppm. Carrier gases are purified before introduction into the pistons. This chromatograph is used for characterizing fluid inclusion volatile chemistry.Contact: Jacob Hanley, Mitchell Kerr
Buehler SimpliMet 1000 automated mounting press.
This technology is used for permanently mounting geological specimens in transparent or opaque plastic resin for petrography and analysis (microprobe, SEM, etc.).Contact: Mitchell Kerr
Struers RotoPol-35 polishing machine.
This machine is used for polishing thin sections, grain mounts and other mounted sample media.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
Water and oil-cooled diamond blade rock saws for sample preparation.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
PETROG automated stepping stage and PetrogLit software mounted on a Nikon Eclipse E400 Pol petrographic microscope with a Pixe-Link digital camera.
Used for point counting of grains, microfossils or other objects in geological samples and for taking gridded images for mosaics covering large sample areas in thin section.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
HP DesignJet 500 colour inkjet plotter
This printer is used for preparing poster-sized print outs for research and teaching presentation.
Leica EM CED-030 carbon coater.
This machine is used for coating samples in thin carbon for electron microscopy and electron microprobe analysis.Contact: Mitchell Kerr, Xiang Yang
Lumic HC4-LM hot-cathode cathodoluminescence microscope with a Varian turbomolecular vacuum pump, Olympus BXFM focusing unit and a Kappa DX40C peltier cooled camera equipped with the Kappa camera control, operated using the DX40C-285FW software package. This microscope is used for textural mapping of zoned minerals in which trace element and major element zoning generates variable CL fluorescence, and for determining initial CL colour colour decay systematics in minerals of varying provenance.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
Rock crushing and milling facility containing a jaw crusher, ceramic, agate and chrome steel puck mills and small grinding mills.
This facility is used for preparing samples for a range of geological research including whole rock analyses.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
The EM Center is equipped with a TESCAN MIRA 3 LMU Variable Pressure Schottky Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope, with a maximum resolution up to 1.2 nm at 30 kV.
A new technique called environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) has been engaged in the system that not only retains all the performance advantages of a conventional high vacuum SEM, but also removes the high vacuum restraint of the sample environment.
Contact: Xiang Yang
Automated HS11 hydroseparator and flow/pulse rate software.
This technology is used for separating small and rare grains of heavy minerals from pulverized and sized fractions of rocks and soils applying Stoke’s law.Contact: Jacob Hanley
MTI KSL-1700X high temperature muffle furnace with molybdenum disilicide heating elements.
This machine is used for heating and melting geological samples in air or a controlled inert atmosphere up to 1700oC and for homogenizing melt inclusions in igneous rocks.Contact: Jacob Hanley
PC Lab (S419) dedicated (for use by geology students only) undergraduate computing facility equipped with 10 HP desktop computers each with double monitor and a wide array of word processing, computational, mapping and other geological software.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
Clean sample preparation lab (S420) containing balances, automatic sieving and weighing column, Elmasonic S300 ultrasonic cleaner for sieve cleaning, McCrone micronizing mill, and a Retsch microball mill with agate, stainless steel, ceramic and tungsten carbide ball mills. It is used for grinding, weighing and sizing geological samples.Contact: Mitchell Kerr
Reflected/transmitted light microscopy lab used for routine microscopy work and as an advanced teaching laboratory. The lab is equipped with 10 Nikon Eclipse 50i Pol microscopes and 10 Olympus BX41 microscopes with transmitted and reflected light capabilities and Pixe-Link digital cameras (x4).Contact: Mitchell Kerr
MARS 6 Microwave digestion System preforms acid and organic digestions at varius temperatures and pressures for elemental analysis with ICPMS. Holds up to 40 samples.
Contact: Todd Ventura
Avanti J-15 Benchtop Centrifuge has high performance benchtop centrifuge for sample separation that can reach up to 10 200 rpm with an ultra-smooth acceleration or deceleration mechanism to reduce sample disturbance and increase sample yields. Has various insert sizes to accommodate different sample types and sizes.
Eppendorf Centrifuge 5415D
Digital benchtop centrifuge for sample separation that can reach up to 13 200 rpm with a run time of up to 30 minutes. Can hold 24 x 1.5 ml tubes or 36 x 0.5 ml tubes.
Fisher Scientific Isotope Dry Block Heater used for drying samples under a steady stream of N2 gas. Can reach a max temperature of 130°C. Various configurations can be achieved with the interchangeable modular block for a variety of application needs.
Organomation N-EVAP 112 Nitrogen Evaporator
Benchtop evaporator that uses N2 gas to dry up to 24 samples. Samples can be held in water or sand bath with being dried.
VWR benchtop incubation/drying ovens
Two industrial lab ovens designated to drying samples or microbial incubation of samples. Maximum temperature 225°C.
Buchi Rotovapor R-205
Two rotary evaporators with heating baths that can evaporate samples from 50 ml to 3000 ml over a temperature range of 20-180°C and rotation speeds of 20 to 280 rpm. Fitted with a Buchi V-800 vacuum controller with a reading range of 0 to 1400 mbar and automatic hysteresis control. As well as a Buchi V-500 vacuum pump that provides a final vacuum of < 15 mbar and a pumping volume of 1.6 m3/h.
Elma S 300 sonicating bath
Holds up to 28L of water for ultrasonic cleaning of sample material.
VWR Standard Vortex Mixer
Two digital vortex mixers for throughally mix samples with a speed range of 500 to 3000 rpm.
Thermo Scientific Dionex Ion Chromatography System
It is used for anion analysis of pore waters from seafloor sediments, fitted with two special cartridges and a pump for the removal/analysis of Na and Cl.
Anaerobic glove box
Large chamber with a double door for sample insertion. Once samples are in the chamber the system is pumped with N2 gas to remove oxygen.
New Brunswick Ultra-Low Temperature Freezer
Two Freezers that have a minimum temperature of -80°C.
Carbolite Gero LHT Oven
High temperature oven (30 to 600°C), for cleaning glassware and heating samples.
Benchtop microscale
With two modes; 2 to 220 g or 0.1 to 1 mg. Accurate to seven decimal places.
Supercritical CO2 Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography Systems
Used to separate different constituents of a compound using super critical CO2. Very fast and efficient mode of analysis. Attached to a QToF in the Chemistry Department.
Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatograph
Used to separate different constituents of a compound within a solvent. Attached to a QToF in the Chemistry Department.
Agilent Technologies GC System with an Autosampler 7693 and Accurate-Mass Q-TOF GC/MS 7200
Has three different detectors (Mass Spectrometer, FID, TCD) that can be used together with the two different chromatographs. Also has a chromatographic modulator and a second-dimension oven.