Instrumentation
The Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center (WHCMSC) Sediment Analysis Laboratory offers a wide range of analytical techniques and methods to help characterize sediments and mineralized samples from coastal, nearshore, and marine environments.
Analytical Instrumentation in the lab:
Grain Size Analysis
- Beckamn Coulter Multisizer3
- Horiba LA-960 Laser Diffraction Unit and Slurry Sampler
Mineralogy and Elemental Composition
- Rigaku MiniFlex 600 Benchtop X-ray Diffraction Unit
- Bruker CTX 800C Benchtop X-ray Fluorescence Unit
Dry Bulk Density
- InstruQuest HumiPyc2 Gas Pycnometer
Total Carbon and Calcium Carbonate
- UIC CM5017 Coulometer
Beckman Coulter Multisizer3
Originally designed to count and size blood cells, Electro-Resistance Multichannel Particle Size Analyzers (EMPSA) have found other applications because of the short time and small amount of material required for analysis. These devices, such as the Beckman Coulter Multisizer 3, have applications in geology, where they are used to measure the grain size of sediments by measuring differences in electrical resistivity produced by sediment particles. Analyses performed on the Multisizer produce the fine-fraction (silt plus clay) distribution. The fine fraction is, in turn, combined with the coarse fraction data to generate a complete grain size distribution. total amount of carbon or carbonate in samples submitted for analysis. A carousel accompanying the instrument allows for set up and processing of multiple samples.
Horiba LA-960 Laser Diffraction Unit and Slurry Sampler
There are several techniques available in the lab for measuring grain size distribution, and our newest analytical capability uses the Horiba LA-960 and attached slurry sampler for laser diffraction particle size analysis. Laser diffraction particle size analysis has become the industry standard for geoscience laboratories and the methods used in the Sed Lab are now comparable to those used by the other Coastal and Marine Geology Program Centers and our collaborators.
Rigaku MiniFlex 600 Benchtop X-ray Diffraction Unit
X-ray powder diffraction is the most common technique used to study the characteristics of crystalline structure and to determine the mineralogy of finer grained sediments, especially clays. X-ray diffractometry using the Rigaku Miniflex 600 is advantageous because of its speed and ease of performance, and because it requires only small amounts of material, is nondestructive, and can be used to perform semi-quantitative analyses of poly-mineralic mixtures.
Bruker CTX 800C Benchtop X-ray Fluorescence Unit
Measuring fluorescent x-rays from samples analyzed in the Bruker CTX 800C, our benchtop x-ray fluorescence unit provides quantitative elemental composition of samples with speed and precision.
InstruQuest HumiPyc2 Gas Pycnometer
Dry bulk density is an important clue to understand packing and sedimentation of coastal and marine sediments. Dry bulk density analysis on the InstruQuest HumiPyc2 gas pycnometer uses helium and a fluid to fill pore spaces in discreet samples and calculates density on a wide array of sediment types.
UIC CM5017 Coulometer
Coulometry is used to determine the amount of matter transformed during an electrolysis reaction by measuring the amount of electricity consumed or produced. Our UIC CM5017 coulometer is used to determine the total amount of carbon or carbonate in samples submitted for analysis. A carousel accompanying the instrument allows for set up and processing of multiple samples.
