MRI: Acquisition of a High-Resolution Bench-Top Mass Spectrometer for Research and Education

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With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program, the Department of Chemistry at Cornell University will acquire a high-resolution bench-top gas chromatograph mass spectrometer (GC/MS). This new spectrometer will allow a core of NSF-funded researchers to carry out research in: a) elucidating the chemical mechanisms underlying hydrocarbon combustion; b) the role of nonstatistical dynamics in the behavior of reactive intermediates; c) fixation of atmospheric nitrogen into value-added products; d) finding surrogates for precious metals in the synthesis of complex molecular targets; e) developing new synthetic strategies for producing polymeric materials of defined molecular structure; f) structural and mechanistic studies of organolithium reagents; g) discovery of novel natural products from insect pathogenic fungi, plant pathogenic bacteria, and higher plants; h) site-isolated catalysis; i) isolation and characterization of biologically significant arthropod natural products; j) developing new, operationally simple, and flexible synthetic methods, which are compatible with complex chemical syntheses. A large group of other researchers from across the campus will also use the requested spectrometer in research projects involving bioorganic chemistry, chemical ecology, carbohydrate chemistry, lipid membranes, materials science, and organic/organometallic synthesis. In short, the requested spectrometer will allow many researchers to characterize naturally occurring or newly created substances, to determine the molecular mass of molecules or molecular fragments, and determine the composition of materials. Gas chromatograph with mass spectrometric detection (GC/MS) is an extremely powerful technique used for the separation and analysis of complex mixtures. The results from studies using the requested spectrometer will have an impact on organic/organometallic chemistry, polymer chemistry, chemical biology, natural product chemistry, catalysis, and materials chemistry. .