Acquisition of a New Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope with Integrated Energy-Dispersive X-ray Analysis System

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0132204DanielFunds from this grant will support the acquisition of a state-of-the-art scanning electron microscope (SEM) with an environmental cell which allows for imaging of hydrated samples at variable pressures. The so-called environmental SEM (ESEM) will also be configured with an energy dispersive x-ray spectrometer (EDS) to allow for quantitative compositional analysis of samples. The ESEM facility at Bucknell will support the research programs of faculty members Chris Daniel (metamorphic petrology/structural geology), Beth Capaldi (entomology), Carl Kirby (environmental geochemistry) and Margot Vigeant (Chemical Engineering) and their students at this liberal arts institution. Specific research thrusts include investigations of the Proterozoic tectonic history of the southwestern U.S. based on SEM and EMP analyses of metamorphic phases to elucidate their P-T history and patterns of chemical zoning, investigations of bacterial interactions with solid iron phases found in rocks exposed to acid mine drainage, studies of biofilms on medical devices and industrial piping and structural studies of live pollen-insect interactions to elucidate insect sensory structures and mechanisms.***