Development of Environmental-Problem Solving Curriculum: Acquisition of GC/MS and Sample Preparation Equipment

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This project enables the implementation of modern environmental chemical analyses in the university's area of emphasis in environmental chemistry, which is offered as an option within the bachelor's chemistry degree program. The program's goal is to prepare students for careers in environmental monitoring, assessment, and industrial ecology research and development by teaching them U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) methods of environmental analysis and assessment. This is done in two lecture/laboratory courses and a required independent research project. Students learn environmental assessment techniques by working as a group to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) using National Environmental Policy Act (1970) guidelines. Samples are collected and analyzed to obtain data in support of the EIS. The only inorganic priority pollutant that had not been measured is Hg, and hence this project provides a vapor generator accessory to be used on an existing AAS. The project also provides a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer to enable measurement of specific organic compounds including chlorinated pesticides, PCBs, PAHs, and petroleum hydrocarbons. Other new equipment upgrades sample preparation procedures to improve safety, efficiency, and analyte yield and reduce the environmental impact of the analysis itself. This equipment includes a microwave-assisted digestor, a grinding mill, a tissue homogenizer, a freeze drier, a sonic dismembrator, solid-phase extraction units, and equipment to heat and recover solvents from Kuderna-Danish evaporators. The new laboratory experiences can be added to the university's Environmental Chemistry Laboratory manual, which is in use at other institutions. No other undergraduate teaching manual is available for teaching USEPA methods. The new equipment can also be used in mandatory student research projects, whose results are traditionally presented off campus. *