For the last few years, we have been working to develop high-access, benchtop equipment for advanced x-ray spectroscopy from 2 keV to 14 keV.  Our goal is to enlarge the range of application by present experts while also expanding access and education in x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) and high-resolution x-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) to new scientific communities.  Our instruments use all commercial components: conventional x-ray tubes, high-quality curved Bragg analyzers and standard solid-state detectors.  Here, we’ll summarize progress to date and discuss future directions.  For XAFS, highlights include: development of a mail-in XAFS user facility at the University of Washington, successful <i>in operando </i>Li-ion battery studies, determination of short-range order in Fe-rich glasses for long-term storage of low-activity nuclear waste, and the first incorporation of hands-on XAFS into undergraduate education.   For benchtop XES, which regularly achieves count rates comparable to those at third-generation synchrotrons, the accomplishments are similarly diverse.  These include: progress on XES as an industrial testing standard for Reduction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) compliance, rapid tests for oxidation state and spin of many metal species in catalysts or battery materials, installation of an on-site XES facility in support of actinide chemistry research at Los Alamos National Labs, bulk-sensitive determination of S and P oxidation states in studies of nanophase material synthesis, and, again, new educational opportunities.  Our experience supports the hypothesis that XAFS and XES have been deeply underutilized by both the synchrotron community and the broader non-synchrotron-user scientific community and that laboratory-based instruments can help fill the ‘introductory’ and ‘analytical’ access niches for research, industrial application, and education.<br/>This work has been supported by the University of Washington Clean Energy Institute and by the United States Department of Energy, Basic Energy Sciences and National Nuclear Security Administration.<br/>

Analytical XAFS and XES on the benchtop in research groups, industrial testing facilities, and teaching labs

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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