Technical Report: Growth of Environmental Science at the NSLS

Author: Northrup Paul   Lanzirotti Antonio   Celestian Aaron  

Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

ISSN: 0894-0886

Source: Synchrotron Radiation News, Vol.20, Iss.3, 2007-05, pp. : 6-13

Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.

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Abstract

In the 25 years since the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) began operations, synchrotron "user facilities" have had a growing impact on research in molecular environmental science (MES). For example, synchrotron-based analytical techniques have allowed researchers to determine the molecular-level speciation of environmentally relevant elements and evaluate their spatial distribution and phase association at very low concentration levels (low parts per million) with micrometer or nanometer resolution [1]. For the environmental scientist, one of the primary advantages of these synchrotron-based techniques is that samples need not be disturbed or destroyed for study; characterization can often be done in-situ in dilute and heterogeneous natural samples with no need for species separation, pre-concentration, or pre-treatment [2]. Liquids, hydrated solids, and biological samples can also often be directly analyzed, which is of fundamental importance in environmental science for understanding the molecular-scale processes that occur at mineral-water interfaces and in understanding how abiotic and biotic processes are involved in the distribution, mobility and ultimate fate of molecular species in the environment.

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