MRI: Acquisition of NIR Chemical Imaging Spectrometer to Study Novel Organic Composites

波多黎各大学玛亚格斯大学化学系将从主要研究仪器(MRI)计划获得这一奖项，从而获得一台近红外化学成像(NIR-CI)光谱仪。该仪器将支持波多黎各大学马亚格斯分校在材料科学、分析化学和制药工程方面的研究和教育工作，并通过美国国家科学基金会结构化有机颗粒系统工程研究中心(ERC-SOPS)，罗格斯大学、新泽西理工学院(NJIT)和普渡大学在新型有机复合材料方面的研究工作将受益。将开展各种研究项目，包括基于材料性能的实时方法的开发，以监测和控制制药和聚合物制造过程；电纺聚合物纤维的表征；液晶聚合物基复合材料的加工和结构。红外光谱仪通过识别组成材料的化学键的振动运动特征来提供材料结构的信息。成像红外光谱仪允许人们在扫描材料时研究空间信息，基本上就像显微镜一样探测样品。它是理解复杂材料组成的必要工具。该仪器将由所有合作机构的研究学生和将作为其所在地的UPR-Mayaguez实验室课程的学生使用。

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez will acquire a Near Infrared Chemical Imaging (NIR-CI) spectrometer with this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program. The instrument will support research and education efforts in materials science, analytical chemistry, and pharmaceutical engineering at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, and through the NSF Engineering Research Center on Structured Organic Particulate Systems (ERC-SOPS), research efforts at Rutgers University, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), and Purdue University in novel organic composites will benefit. Various research projects will be undertaken including the development of real time methods, based on material properties, to monitor and control pharmaceutical and polymer manufacturing processes; characterization of electrospun polymeric fibers; the processing and structure of liquid-crystalline polymer based composites.An infrared spectrometer provides information of the structure of materials by identifying vibrational motions characteristic of the chemical bonds that make up the material. An imaging infrared spectrometer allows the study of spatial information as one scans over the materials, acting essentially as a microscope probing across a sample. It is a necessary tool for understanding the composition of complex materials. This instrument will be used by research students at all the collaborating institutions and by students in laboratory courses at UPR-Mayaguez where it will be housed.