MRI: Acquisition of a Powder X-Ray Diffractometer

在主要研究仪器项目（MRI）和化学研究仪器项目（CRIF）的支持下，内华达大学里诺分校的Benjamin King教授和他的同事Ana de Bettencourt-Dias将获得一台x射线粉末衍射仪。一般来说，x射线衍射仪可以精确测量分子的完整三维结构，包括键距和角度，并提供有关分子相对于邻近分子的空间排列的准确信息。粉末衍射仪也允许成分分析。这里描述的研究将影响许多领域，包括有机和无机化学，材料化学，地质学和生物化学。该仪器不仅将成为化学，而且将成为地质、工程和材料科学的教学、研究和研究训练的组成部分。此外，该工具将用于涉及K-12地区学校的外展活动。该提案旨在加强各级的研究和教育，特别是在以下领域：(a)设计和合成路易斯碱衍生金属有机框架（MOFs），以选择性地从气体混合物中去除二氧化碳；(b)研究用于催化还原二氧化碳的盖顶混合双金属体系；(c)开发用于DNA位点特异性结合的单金属和双金属插入物；(d)研究用于光电、光催化二氧化碳还原和光声成像技术的分子系统；(e)研究铁和过氧化氢体内平衡的生物无机化学；(f)开发复杂有机分子的制备策略。

With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI) and support from the Chemistry Research Instrumentation Program (CRIF), Professor Benjamin King from University of Nevada Reno and colleagues Ana de Bettencourt-Dias will acquire an X-ray-powder diffractometer. In general, an X-ray diffractometer allows accurate and precise measurements of the full three-dimensional structure of a molecule, including bond distances and angles, and provides accurate information about the spatial arrangement of a molecule relative to neighboring molecules. A powder diffractometer also allows compositional analysis. The studies described here will impact a number of areas, including organic and inorganic chemistry, materials chemistry, geology and biochemistry. This instrument will be an integral part of teaching as well as research and research training not only in Chemistry but also in Geology and Engineering and Materials Science. In addition, the instrument will be used in outreach activities involving K-12 area schools.The proposal is aimed at enhancing research and education at all levels, especially in areas such as (a) designing and synthesizing Lewis base derivatized metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) to selectively remove carbon dioxide from gaseous mixtures; (b) studying capped, mixed bimetallic systems for the catalytic reduction of carbon dioxide; (c) developing mono- and bi-metallo-intercalators for site specific binding of DNA; (d) investigating molecular systems for application in photovoltaics, photocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction and photoacoustic imaging technologies; (e) studying bioinorganic chemistry of iron and hydrogen peroxide homeostasis; and (f) developing strategies for the preparation of complex organic molecules.