David W Peate
Home Page


ICP-MS lab
main page

ICP-MS
scheduling

ICP-MS lab
Publications

Clean lab
facility (B40)

Department

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences logo & link

University of Iowa logo & link

page maintained by
David Peate © 2013

 

iTEA lab – Iowa Trace Element Analysis Laboratory

Clean Laboratory (room B40 Trowbridge Hall) - (319) 335-3362

This 350 sq.ft. metal-free clean laboratory has a positive pressure environment and it is equipped with two laminar flow work stations, two fume hoods, a Millipore ultrapure water system, a separate weighing room with two Sartorius balances (Genius analytical balance and Expert top-loading balance), an Analab closed environment evaporation system, two centrifuges, an ultrasonic bath, several Savillex acid stills, five temperature-controlled hot plates, and miscellaneous other items (including Parr bombs for high-pressure digestions). This facility was set up to allow dissolution of rock samples (mainly HF-HNO3 digestions of silicates) in a clean environment to minimise contamination of small samples for trace element and radiogenic isotope analysis. Standard ion-exchange methods are available for separation of Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf and U-Th-Ra for isotopic analysis.

Another nearby room (B35B) is used as a general purpose laboratory for chemistry and mineral separations. It has a fume hood, two high-temperature furnaces, a drying oven, a large, explosion-proof centrifuge, and a stand-alone laminar flow workbox for chemical separations. A flux fusion method is available to digest rock and soil samples, ready for major element analysis using the ICP-OES instrument in the Department of Chemistry. A Deltech 1-atm gas mixing furnace allows olivine-hosted melt inclusions to be homogenized to glass under controlled redox conditions. This room also has proper windows to the outside world (a novelty for the Trowbridge Hall basement rooms), allowing the lab users to truly appreciate the wonderful Iowa weather throughout all the four seasons.