Acquisition of an X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer

X射线荧光光谱分析作为一种精确测定岩石等物质中主要和多种微量元素含量的方法，在地学领域得到了广泛的应用。有了这笔赠款，我们将获得一台最先进的波长色散X射线荧光光谱仪，以取代杨百翰大学地质科学系已有17年历史的仪器。智力价值：岩石的主要和微量元素成分为其起源和演化提供了基本线索，对大多数现代地质学研究至关重要。这类数据通常由学生使用XRF光谱分析获得，因为它相对容易使用，许多元素的精度都很高。具体的研究领域包括超级喷发的性质和原因，与热点和裂谷有关的镁铁质岩浆的演化，岩浆作用与贱金属和贵金属矿床的关系，沉积盆地中凝灰岩矿床的地球化学和年代学，以及通过对南亚、新英格兰和北美西部构造演化的多学科研究揭示的大陆增长。广泛的影响：使用该仪器给社会带来的好处从对岩浆演化的纯科学理解到火山灾害的应用领域和金属矿床的寻找。新的XRF光谱仪还将为本科生和研究生提供广泛的教育机会；他们将作为下一代分析员的一部分接受培训。通过做他们自己的分析，而不是仅仅是？寄出样本？到外部实验室，学生将能够理解数据的局限性，因为他们亲自处理过分析问题、样品制备问题以及数据中的错误来源。这个XRF实验室也将对杨百翰大学以外的教育和研究产生重大影响，这是我们与其他学院以及犹他州地质调查局和美国地质调查局合作的结果。其中两所院校最近从大专改为理工学院，授予大学地质学学位。这些新兴项目中几乎没有可用的分析仪器，因此使用这一设施将为这些大学的学生提供新的体验。

X-ray fluorescence spectrometry is widely used in the geosciences as a precise method to determine major and many trace element concentrations in rocks and other materials. With this grant, we will acquire a state of the art wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer to replace the 17-year-old instrument in the Department of Geological Sciences at Brigham Young University.Intellectual Merit: The major and trace element compositions of rocks provide fundamental clues to their origin and evolution and are vital to most modern geological studies. Such data are commonly acquired by students using XRF spectrometry because of its relative ease of use and high precision for many elements. Specific research areas include the nature and causes of super eruptions, the evolution of mafic magmas related to hot spots and rifts, the relationship of magmatism to base and precious metal deposits, the geochemistry and chronology of tuff deposits in sedimentary basins, and the growth of continents as revealed by multi-disciplinary studies of the tectonic evolution of southern Asia, New England, and western North America.Broader Impacts: The benefits to society stemming from use of this instrument range from purely scientific understandings of magma evolution to the applied fields of volcanic hazards and the search of metallic ore deposits. A new XRF spectrometer will also provide extensive education opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students; they will be trained as part of the next generation of analysts. By doing their own analyses and not just ?sending samples off? to an external lab, students will be able to understand the limitations of the data because they have personally dealt with analytical problems, sample preparation issues, and with the sources of error in their data. This XRF lab will also have major impacts on education and research beyond BYU, as a result of our collaboration with other colleges and with the Utah Geological Surve, and USGS. Two of these institutions recently changed from junior colleges to BS granting universities with geology degrees. Few analytical instruments are available in these emerging programs, so access to this facility will provide new experiences for students at these colleges.