Integration of a GC-Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer into the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum

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This project focuses on improvements in upper division chemistry laboratories that would be fostered by the acquisition of a GC-ion trap mass spectrometer. In the upper division laboratories, the students perform comprehensive investigations beyond what is normally fond in many 'cookbook" type laboratory experiments. Each project lasts for two to four weeks, and includes some library research, sample preparation, and method development. The GC-MS is an integral part in several of these laboratory projects. The mass spectrometry of large biomolecules has become an increasingly powerful bioanalytical technique. Due to the size and cost of the necessary instrumentation, biological mass spectrometry is absent from most undergraduate curricula. In this project an experiment is being developed using the GC-ion trap that integrates the methodology of bioanalytical mass spectrometry into the course curriculum. Undergraduate research projects focusing on GC-MS method development and gas-phase thermochemistry are also underway. Arkansas's abundant natural resources foster many opportunities for environmentally related research projects. One example focuses on relating the aromatics emanating from various bird nests to the senses of predators. We also are utilizing the GC-ion trap mass spectrometer in the organic laboratory to aid in the identification products from organic syntheses.