MRI track 1: a new single crystal X-RAY diffraction instrument for structure solution of ordered and disordered earth materials

The National Science Foundation Office of Integrative Activities awarded the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History Foundation $489,860 on August 1, 2026, under the Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050) to acquire and deploy a single-crystal X-ray diffractometer for structure analysis of ordered and disordered earth materials.

The instrument will support research across planetary mineralogy, biomineralization, and critical mineral extraction. Applications include characterizing bacterial formation of kidney stones, tracing lithium ions through battery materials, analyzing Martian salt minerals for signatures of ancient microbial life, and studying kinetic processes such as brine crystallization and amorphous-to-crystalline calcium oxalate transitions. The diffractometer will enable analysis of large unit-cell minerals, highly hydrated microporous frameworks, and submillimeter crystals with stacking disorder or twinning, as well as short-range structural correlations in amorphous phases and aqueous solutions under in operando conditions.

The instrument will operate within a public-facing laboratory at the museum's Dockweiler, California location, visited by approximately one million people annually. The museum will integrate the diffractometer into hands-on workforce training partnerships with local community colleges and universities to develop the next generation of scientists. Performance period runs through July 31, 2029. No sub-recipients are planned for this award.

Abstract

The new single-crystal X-RAY diffractometer will enable research across the physical and life sciences. Applications include understanding how bacteria help form kidney stones; tracing lithium ions through battery materials; and exploring whether martian salt minerals could preserve signatures of ancient microbial life. The instrument will operate within a public-facing laboratory visited by approximately one million people per year. The instrument will support hands-on workforce training of the next generation of scientists through partnerships with local community colleges and universities. The project addresses challenges in human health and domestic critical mineral supply. The goals of this project are to characterize the atomic structures of disordered, weakly diffracting, and dynamically evolving earth materials. Three research areas include planetary mineralogy, biomineralization, and critical mineral extraction. The instrument configuration will facilitate analysis of large unit-cell minerals, highly hydrated microporous frameworks, and submillimeter crystals exhibiting stacking disorder or twinning. The configuration will enable short-range structural correlations in amorphous phases and aqueous solutions under in operando conditions. This will facilitate kinetic studies of brine crystallization, the amorphous-to-crystalline calcium oxalate transition in kidney stone formation, and local structure changes in lithium sorbents. This project contributes directly to advances in human health, critical materials science, and the search for life beyond earth. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.