Early Career: Acquisition of a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Facility for Earth Science Research at Baylor University

该合同将用于贝勒大学用于环境样品分析的固态300 MHz核磁共振波谱仪的升级所需的部件。核磁共振设施将是地质部-S有机地球化学实验室的一部分。购买具有交叉极化和魔角旋转的固态探测器将有助于获取GeoMedia中低丰度核(例如13C和15N)的核磁共振谱--提供有关现代和古代土壤和沉积物中有机物的结构、身份和分子动力学的信息。国家科学基金会的资金将用于建立核磁共振暑期学校？这是一个国际知名的短期课程，旨在为地球和环境科学的学生提供必要的技术专业知识，以便将核磁共振光谱学应用于他们的研究兴趣。固体核磁共振设施将支持地质系贝勒教员和学生的研究以及3个跨学科倡议：陆地古气候研究小组(7名教员)，生态、地球和环境科学研究所(19名教员)，以及水库和水生系统研究中心(19名教员)。将立即受益于核磁共振设施的研究领域包括：1)表征全球土壤碳库的氧化状态和生态系统氧化比率对气候变化的反应，2)评估发展中国家土地利用对输送到海洋的河流有机物质质量的影响(NSF GEO OCE资助)，3)开发生态系统生化清单，作为了解土壤碳动态的工具，4)开发和验证古火灾温度替代指标，以研究火在地球系统中的作用，5)将古火温度代理应用于NSF EAR资助的几个利用古土壤记录进行的更新世-全新世气候变异性研究6)通过监测现代变性土中的碳循环来校准古土壤CO2气压计(NSF EAR资助)，7)阐明天然有机物与纳米级矿物颗粒相互作用的机制，8)研究黑色的团聚体结构。固体核磁共振是一种强大的分析工具，能够从环境样品(土壤、沉积物、生物量等)中非侵入性地提取一系列化学结构信息。然而，核磁共振光谱学在地球科学中仍然没有得到充分利用，因为它不是传统地球和环境科学课程的一部分。贝勒大学最近采取了几项重大举措来满足社会的需求-S，随着陆地古气候研究小组、生态、地球和环境系统博士研究所(TIEEES)以及水库和水生系统研究中心的建立，对在地球和环境科学方面受过跨学科培训的科学家的需求不断增加。我们建议建立一个设施，使参与这些项目的教职员工和学生能够获得用于地质、生物地球化学和环境研究的固态核磁共振波谱。固态核磁共振设备将被整合到贝勒大学S先进仪器研讨会中，该研讨会每年为S地区小型学院的学生和教职员工举办。此外，NSF的资金将用于建立一个核磁共振暑期学校？这是一个在国际上广为人知的短期课程，旨在使地球和环境科学的学生掌握必要的技术专长，以便将核磁共振光谱学应用于他们的研究兴趣。拟议研究的预期成果是帮助地球科学界利用许多主要研究机构现有的未开发的地球分析能力。

This award will be used to purchase components for the upgrade of a solid-state 300 MHz nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer (NMR) for the analysis of environmental samples at Baylor University. The NMR facility will be part of the Geology Department?s organic geochemistry laboratory. The purchase of a solid-state probe with cross-polarization and magic angle spinning will facilitate the acquisition of NMR spectra for nuclei of low abundance in geomedia (e.g. 13C and 15N)?providing information on the structure, identity, and molecular dynamics of the organic matter in modern and ancient soil and sediment. NSF funds will be used to establish an NMR summer school ? an internationally-publicized short-course intended to equip students in the Earth and environmental sciences with the technical expertise necessary to apply NMR spectroscopy to their research interestsThe solid-state NMR facility will support the research of Baylor faculty and students in the department of geology as well as 3 interdisciplinary initiatives: the terrestrial paleoclimate research group (7 faculty members), the institute of ecological, Earth, and environmental sciences (19 faculty members), and the center for reservoir and aquatic systems research (19 faculty members). Research areas that will immediately benefit from the access to the NMR facility include: 1) characterizing the oxidation state of global soil carbon pools and the response of ecosystem oxidative ratio to climate change, 2) assessing the impact of developing-world land use on the quality of riverine organic matter delivered to the oceans (NSF GEO OCE-funded), 3) developing ecosystem biochemical inventories as a tool for understanding soil carbon dynamics, 4) development and validation of a paleo-fire temperature proxy for studying the role of fire in the Earth system, 5) application of the paleofire temperature proxy to several NSF-EAR funded studies of Pleistocene -Holocene climate variability using paleosol records 6) calibrating the paleosol CO2 barometer for vertic paleosols by monitoring carbon cycling in modern Vertisols (NSF EAR-funded), 7) elucidating mechanisms of natural organic matter interactions with nanoscale mineral particles, and 8) investigations of the aggregate structure in melanins.Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a powerful analytical tool capable of non-invasively extracting a host of chemical structure information from environmental samples (soil, sediment, biomass, etc). However, NMR spectroscopy remains underutilized in the geosciences because it is not a part of traditional Earth and environmental science curricula. Baylor University has recently undertaken several major initiatives to meet the society?s increasing need for scientists with interdisciplinary training in the Earth and environmental sciences with the establishment of a terrestrial paleoclimate research team, a PhD-granting institute in the ecological, Earth, and Environmental systems (TIEEES), and a center for reservoir and aquatic systems research (CRASR). We propose the establishment of a facility that would give the faculty and students participating in these programs access to solid-state NMR spectroscopy for geological, biogeochemical, and environmental studies. The solid-state NMR facility will be integrated into Baylor University?s Advanced Instrumentation Workshop, which is held annually for student and faculty from the area?s small colleges. Additionally, NSF funds will be used to establish an NMR summer school ? an internationally-publicized short-course intended to equip students in the Earth and environmental sciences with the technical expertise necessary to apply NMR spectroscopy to their research interests. The intended outcome of the proposed research is to help the geoscience community utilize an undeveloped geoanalytical capability that exists at many major research institutions.