MRI: Acquisition of a High-Pressure, High-Temperature Small Angle X-Ray Scattering Instrument for Oklahoma

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award supports the acquisition of a Small-Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) instrument that will enable fundamental and applied research in the state of Oklahoma and surrounding region. The instrument will allow scientists and engineers to study the nano-scale structure of a wide variety of materials. These include polymers, fibers, composites, thin-films, liquid crystals, nanoparticles, detergents, emulsions, and biological materials.

This instrument will also enable study of these materials under flow, and at elevated pressures and temperatures which are relevant to industrial processes. The research projects enabled by this instrument include those related to plastic recycling, drug delivery, and water treatment. Beyond state-of-the-art science, the award will also enhance the educational and training opportunities for students in Oklahoma by providing instrument access in an annual, two-day, hands-on training workshop.

A SAXS instrument will be a valuable complement to existing instrument infrastructure in Oklahoma and will complement the electron microscopy instrumentation available in the state. SAXS is a valuable addition because the results obtained from SAXS are representative of the bulk material and not just the local portion(s) observed in electron micrographs.

Micrographs, however, are much easier to interpret and do not rely on fitting the measured data to complex mathematical models, as SAXS does. By having access to both techniques, researchers can draw much stronger conclusions about their materials than would be possible with only one type of measurement. Importantly, SAXS is also non-destructive and analyzes the material’s structure in its original state without any specialized additional equipment or sample preparation.

The instrument’s 2D detector will be valuable for anisotropic samples with aligned nano-scale structures, such as liquid crystals or flow-deformed particles.

This project is jointly funded by the division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI), the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), and the Major Instrumentation Research Program (MRI).

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.