Facilities
Our laboratory facilities include:
Main teaching laboratory
This is a large teaching laboratory suitable for classes of up to 50 students.
Postgraduate research laboratory
An area primarily used by postgraduate students, equipped with fume cupboards, balances, oven and a furnace.
Main research laboratory
Hydrofluoric acid digestions, microwave extraction and solvent based work is carried out in this large research room. Centrifuging facilities are also available.
Micromorphology and Micropalaeontology Suite
This suite of 5 rooms contains a teaching room equipped with a range of Leica microscopes. Micormorphology research rooms house a Skyscan microtomograph for 3D X-ray analysis of sediments and other material and a thin section archive. Contact Simon Carr for further details.
The suite is also used for micropalaeontological research and teaching. A small connecting Ostracod Research laboratory houses high-resolution video microscopy equipment. Contact David J. Horne: 0207 882 7619.
Rainfall Simulation Room & Wetland Research Laboratory
This room contains a rainfall simulator used primarily for work investigating contaminant flow paths through soils. For further details contact: Kate Heppell. The laboratory also houses an environmental cabinets where temperature, light and humidity can be controlled. It is currently used mainly for experimental work into water and gas transport in peat and estuarine sediments. Contact Lisa Belyea Tel: 020 7882 2781.
Luminescence Dating Laboratory
This is a darkroom with facilities for the extraction of quartz from sediments using hydrofluoric acid and sodium polytungstate. Measurement of samples is undertaken at other laboratories with whom we have informal arrangements. For further details contact: Sven Lukas.
Sediment Preparation Laboratories
Two rooms are designated for sediment preparation. Grinding and subsampling of soils is carried out in one. Facilities include a full range of stainless steel sieves, pestle and mortars and riffle samplers. We also carry out hydrogen peroxide digestions of soils prior to particle size analysis. These rooms also contain a freeze drier, ovens and several balances including two 5 d.p. balances.
Contact Simon Dobinson
Wet chemistry laboratory
This room is equipped for preparation of samples and standards for instrumental analysis. This room also contains our Dionex Ion Chromatograph. ICS 2500.
Contact Laura Shotbolt.
Main Instrumental Laboratory
This room contains instrumentation requiring compresses gases: a Varian ICP-OES, HiPerTOC dissolved carbon and nitrogen analyser and the Elemental carbon and nitrogen analyser.
Contact Laura Shotbolt.
Particle Size Room
This room contains a HiPerTOC dissolved carbon and nitrogen analyser.
For further information contact: Laura Shotbolt.
Washroom
A separate room for acid washing glassware and plastic containers for trace metal analysis. Cleaning of glassware for other techniques is carried out in the wet chemistry lab.
Coldstores and freezer
We have two walk in fridges and a walk in freezer for sample storage.