Automated solid phase extraction instrument for the analysis of complex environmental and forensic samples

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An automated Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) instrument for the preparation and extraction of compounds of interest from complex samples is proposed. The device is a diverse instrument that will be applied to the forensic analysis of skeletal tissue samples for drugs and poisions, as well as the analysis of environmental samples for organometallic compounds and pesticides. The proposed equipment is critical for for both analytical method development and ongoing research characterizing drug disposition in skeletal tissues in a forensic context and the fate of important pollutants in aquatic environments (e.g., sediments, aquatic organisms). This research is vital to the development of analytical methods for use in death investigations where the remains have decomposed to the point of partial or complete skeletonization. In these cases, analysis of skeletal tissues (mineralized bone and/or bone marrow) may be the only option for toxicological analysis. This methodology is not currently used with any regularity as a result of the lack of basic research in the area. The proposed research program will address this problem through characterization of drug concentrations in skeletal tissues in a forensic context. The proposed research is also important to the understanding the fate of pesticides and other toxins such as mercury in the natural environment, which is critical to environmental resource management and remediation.