MRI: Acquisition of a MALDI‐ToF Mass Spectrometer to Advance Research and Education in Polymer Science and Engineering

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NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY Materials composed of manmade molecules are indispensable in modern solutions to challenges in improving healthcare, reducing emissions, saving fuel, and protecting the security of the United States. Manmade materials consisting of large molecules formed by combining many small molecules together are the focus of this project. Such molecules are called polymers. Determining the molecular make-up, size, and purity of manmade polymers requires special analytical tools. A key tool is mass spectrometry, which gains information about molecular properties by precisely and accurately determining molecular masses. The proposed equipment, a Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometer, supported by a Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award, will enable this task, thus facilitating the discovery and preparation of new materials with properties fine-tuned for the desired applications. The instrument acquired will have the capabilities needed by scientists and engineers at the University of Akron and collaborating academic and industrial researchers to understand how new polymers can be made that are recyclable, degradable, and from renewable sources. It will also allow for the development of polymer molecules that are connected in new ways and for the observation of the molecules located on the surface of a material. The University of Akron has established itself as a national hub of polymer mass spectrometry. The new instrumentation will help this national resource to continue to provide access to an analytical method growing rapidly in its importance for discovery and innovation with manmade polymers. The instrument will be available to industrial researchers as well as college faculty from Ohio and nationwide, helping fellow scientists to address important societal needs. It will also be integrated into educational activities, including instrumental analysis courses and research courses for graduate and undergraduate students, and programs enabling the recruitment and training of a diverse workforce, including NSF's Research Experience for Undergraduates program, the McNair Scholars program, and the American Chemistry Society's summer research experiences for underprivileged students.TECHNICAL SUMMARYThe proposed mass spectrometer will allow researchers to solve challenging analytical problems at the molecular level, which is a prerequisite for the creation of new materials with the properties required for specific applications. Modern mass spectrometry (MS) facilities are essential in the interdisciplinary enterprise of materials design and synthesis. The development of synthetic methods for next generation materials and the elucidation of their molecular structure-properties relationships both drives and benefits from development of new MS methods that yield new structural information unattainable with current instrumentation and measurements. The proposed instrument will be used in the development of new characterization tools and in analyses that answer central questions in the synthesis and evaluation of properties of synthetic materials, including (bio)degradable polymers, self-assembled macromolecules, recyclable composites, biomimetic materials, and functionalized surfaces. Higher resolution MALDI-MS, coupled with tandem mass spectrometry will make possible conclusive determination of molecular composition, primary structure, architecture, and molecular weight range of new compounds or blends. New insights into surfaces will be gained by advanced development of solventless MALDI techniques. Higher resolution, higher speed imaging capabilities will extend method advancements to 2D mapping of polymer films and biomaterial surfaces, aiding elucidation of surface modification, adhesion, drug delivery, and segregation processes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.