MRI: Track 3 Acquisition of Helium Recovery Equipment to Enhance Research and Training in Earth Sciences and Chemistry

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award will provide funds to acquire equipment for helium gas recovery and cryogen-free operations for two widely used multi-user research centers at the University of Minnesota (UMN): The Institute for Rock Magnetism (IRM) in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Laboratory in the Department of Chemistry. This equipment will make these facilities more resilient against helium shortages, rationing, and supply disruptions (and the associated impacts on cost). As a result, these actions will maximize the use of instrumentation without interruption and expand the laboratories’ scientific output, as well as benefiting numerous NSF-funded projects, and improving the sustainability and resilience of two key research centers. Measurements in these laboratories are crucial for characterizing and understanding the magnetic properties of geological, biological, planetary, and novel synthetic materials related to a broad range of scientific questions. Helium is a finite resource and it is imperative that proper stewardship, including helium gas recovery and cryogen-free functionality become commonplace. The dependence on non-renewable cryogens has made both laboratories vulnerable to shortages, as well as increasing annual operating costs. The IRM and NMR Laboratory are at a critical juncture where helium shortages and associated supply quotas have already reduced operations and pose increasing uncertainty on scheduled activities. The ongoing shortage has severely limited our ability to serve the broader scientific community and advance cutting-edge research. The new equipment will reduce or eliminate the need for LHe for critical equipment in our facilities. This will allow the facilities to maximize the use of its instruments without interruption, further expanding the laboratories’ scientific output, benefit numerous NSF funded projects, and improve the sustainability and resilience of two key research centers. Both facilities are dependent on uninterrupted supplies of liquid Helium (LHe) for the operations of superconducting magnets, superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometers, and variable temperature 57Fe Mössbauer spectrometers for measurements that are crucial for characterizing and understanding the magnetic properties of geological, biological, planetary, and novel synthetic materials. The low-temperature (2-300 K) magnetic properties of natural materials, their synthetic analogues, and novel materials are indispensable for understanding a broad range of scientific questions, with low-temperature measurements providing observations not obtainable through any other methods. NMR spectroscopy is the most powerful technique available for the elucidation of molecular structures. Its many uses include determining the arrangement of atoms within molecules and characterizing the dynamics of molecular interactions in solution. Preserving the functionality of LHe equipment is essential to the operation of (1) the IRM as an NSF multi-user facility for national and international researchers; and (2) the NMR Laboratory as a shared-use instrumentation facility for research and teaching at the UMN.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.