Seamless integration of direct mercury analysis into environmental teaching labs

Vassar College recently upgraded its science facilities to expand instruction and research capabilities and enhance the learning experience for their 2,400 undergraduate students. The increased interest from faculty and students in performing environmental analyses on soils and peat motivated the Department of Chemistry at Vassar to look for a new analytical technique for mercury determination.

The Department of Chemistry recently expanded their facilities with a new building hosting teaching and research activities. Although they currently have an ICP-MS instrument for metals analysis, they required a dedicated mercury analysis solution to achieve their research goals and throughput needs.
Even though an ICP-MS instrument was available in-house, the well documented drawbacks of using ICP-based techniques for mercury analysis, such as memory effects that require long cleaning cycles, led Vassar’s Chemistry Department to evaluate other techniques. After doing their research, the department narrowed their evaluation two techniques: Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption (CVAA) and direct mercury analysis. “The simplicity in operation and the lack of sample preparation was a great motivator to consider the Milestone DMA-80 evo over CVAA,” said Dr. Karen Wovkulich, Instrumentation Manager for the Chemistry Department. Using direct mercury analysis, results can be obtained in only 5 minutes, far less than with CVAA, and the DMA-80 evo’s ease-of-use provides universities seamless integration into the teaching lab experience. After acquiring a new DMA-80 evo in 2019, students in upper-level courses at Vassar have been able to perform mercury analysis in diverse matrices, including fish and canned products. Eliminating the significant time that used to be spent on a sample prep technique has enabled these students to dedicate more of their time on improving their planning and testing protocols and on generating the data they need for their projects.

In addition to eliminating the acid digestion steps and daily calibration required by CVAA, the Milestone DMA- 80 evo incorporates the latest technology in direct mercury analysis. Its double-beam spectrophotometer provides accurate and precise data for environmental research at the ppt level, and its 40-position autosampler allows for high sample throughput across a variety of matrices, such as water, soils, fish, etc. Its minimum maintenance, ease of use, and reliable performance make the DMA-80 evo a valuable addition to the instrumentation capabilities at Vassar College for their research and teaching needs.
Bringing direct mercury analysis in-house has expanded the analytical capabilities at Vassar and increased the participation of undergraduate students in environmental studies focusing on heavy metals. The DMA-80 evo has been used in advanced laboratory courses and will continue to be a valuable teaching tool to improve the critical thinking skills that students require for environmental and analytical chemistry studies.