Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

We seek funds to upgrade the scanning electron microscope (SEM) facility at the University of Northern British Columbia. The facility is critical to the research programs of resident and visiting faculty members in the fields of soil science, mycology, environmental science and engineering, geomorphology and limnology. The absence of similar infrastructure within a 900-km radius makes the continued operation of this facility paramount to individual and collaborative research funded through the NSERC Discovery Program. Initiated in 1995, the SEM facility comprises a Philips XLS 30 microscope, sputter coater and critical point dryer. Although the microscope is operational, the computer that runs the microscope is obsolete due to an outdated operating system and graphical display controllers. We request funds to purchase a workstation that is specifically designed to run the Philips XLS 30 microscope. The upgraded facility can quickly and reliably establish the required vacuum conditions with better control of the microscope lens and faster transfer of data through a USB port. The workstation will increase efficiency of data collection and improve training opportunities for highly qualified personnel and researchers. The continued operation of the SEM facility creates synergy with other instruments at the Central Equipment Laboratory at UNBC to generate critical information that advances research in soil formation, reconstruction of past climate, limnology, environmental remediation, mine reclamation and other related topics.