The Department of Chemistry has a wise array of instruments. They are housed in De La Roche 315, next door to the Chemistry Research Lab and down the hall from the Chemistry Suite.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectrometer
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The largest of the new instruments is a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectrometer. The instrument, which everyone refers to as the "NMR", is a JEOL ECS 400.
An NMR is commonly used in determining chemical structures, understanding chemical and enzyme kinetics, determining protein structures, and in a variety of other chemical, physical, and biological applications. It is the standard tool for chemical characterization in industry, academics, and government. An NMR works on the same principles as MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) through exciting atoms to understand their unique environment. The spectrometer is a complex system which, at its core, utilizes a superconducting magnet kept at -459 degrees F through cooling with liquid helium and liquid nitrogen. Our 400 MHz high field NMR is ahead of research standards (for now), has
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automation power to run countless experiments on 24 different samples in succession, and uses a revolutionary software called Delta which is user-friendly even for beginners.
For a chemistry major at St. Bonaventure, training on the NMR begins as a sophomore in Organic Chemistry I (CHEM 301 & CHML 301). In the photo above, Dr. David Hilmey (left, front) instructs Organic Chem students on the use the NMR. After training, students use the instrument themselves, at times without direct supervision. Extensive use of the NMR continues in Physical Chemistry II (CHEM 402 & CHML 402) as well as Instrumental Analysis (CHEM 431 & CHML431). It also finds frequent use in the ongoing research by the Chemistry Department faculty.
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Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer
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The ICP-MS is a sensitive analytical device used in elemental analysis, capable of part-per-billion sensitivity. A sample is broken into ions by passing through a "torch" made of Argon cations and free electrons with a temperature of approximately 10,000 degrees Celsius. The ions are then identified by mass by a quadrupole mass spectrometer. This technique can be applied to a wide variety of sample types, but is particularly well-suited for trace metal analysis. |
Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometer
The LC-MS is a powerful instrument that combines the physical separation capabilities of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with the mass analysis capabilities of mass spectrometry. The LC-MS is standard equipment in the pharmaceutical and chemical industry. It's important in quality control, drug development, as well as testing the pharmacokinetics of drugs to see how quickly it is cleared from the body. It has also been used extensively in proteomics, the follow-up field of study to the sequencing of the human genome.
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Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometer
The LC-MS, described above, complements our previously-obtained GC-MS. The GC-MS is very important in identifying substances in environmental chemistry, forensics, astro-chemistry, food analysis, and medicine.
Ultraviolet-Visible Spectrophotometer
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The UV-Vis measures the ability of molecules to absorb light photons at a particular wavelength in the ultraviolet or visible region. This is often used to measure oxidation states of metals, conjugation in organic molecules, and charge transfer between two or more different molecules.
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