Aerogel dust collection for in situ mass spectrometry analysis

Jones, Steven M.; Anderson, M. S.; Davies, A. G.; Kirby, James; Burchell, M. J.; Cole, M. J.

doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2014.09.047

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(36 reference statements)

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“…Instead, after imaging to locate the larger particles, aerogel samples will likely need to be crushed for a bulk averaged analysis. That this can be successfully done was shown by Jones et al (2015). Whatever the collection system, one remaining issue is how often to trigger the particle extraction for analysis.…”

Section: Sample Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, the manufacturing process for common aerogels (i.e., SiO 2 aerogel) involves heavy use of organic materials, not all of which are removed during processing, and this can lead to significant organic content of the aerogel itself, which can vary from batch to batch even with the same manufacturing process (see Tsou et al., 2003). However, despite these caveats, it has been shown that microparticles laden with PAHs, for example, can be captured in aerogel at 5.5 km s −1 , and mass spectroscopy (with an instrument designed for use on a space mission) can detect their original organic content (Jones et al., 2015). Also, when analyzed on Earth, the NASA Stardust mission aerogel samples were shown to have collected glycine from material freshly ejected from comet 81P/Wild‐2 (Elsila et al., 2009), although detailed isotopic analysis was required to rule out terrestrial contamination.…”

Section: Impact Shock‐induced Changes To Impactorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Icy ocean worlds, plumes, and tasting the water

Burchell,

Wozniakiewicz

2024

Meteorit & Planetary Scien

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This paper considers how space missions that fly through the plumes known, or suspected, to erupt naturally from some icy ocean worlds (IOW), such as Enceladus, or that aim to intercept icy ejecta from impact cratering processes on such bodies can sample the water and ice within the plumes. The mechanics of how grains (either in the plumes or the ejecta) would interact with a passing spacecraft (i.e., impact speeds, shock pressures, etc.) are introduced. The impact speeds are estimated and vary with both the mass of the IOW and the orbital parameters of a space mission. This can lead to large differences in impact speeds (and hence collection methods) at bodies such as Enceladus and Europa. The implications of these different impact speeds (a few hundred m s−1 to several km s−1, and even greater than 10 km s−1) for the collection of organic materials from the plumes are shown to be significant.

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Section: Sample Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Impact Shock‐induced Changes To Impactorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Icy ocean worlds, plumes, and tasting the water

Burchell,

Wozniakiewicz

2024

Meteorit & Planetary Scien

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“…In a second experiment, polypyrrole-coated 25 μm phenanthrene microparticles (mean polypyrrole overlayer thickness = 30 nm) were fired into a silica aerogel block (density = 32 ± 3 kg m −3 ) at 2.07 km s −1 . These aerogel blocks are similar to those reported by Jones et al 26 In principle, such ultralow density targets enable capture of minimally processed microparticles even for impacts occurring within the hypervelocity regime. 27 FT-IR Spectroscopy Studies.…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synthesis of Autofluorescent Phenanthrene Microparticles via Emulsification: A Useful Synthetic Mimic for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon-Based Cosmic Dust

Chan,

Wills,

Tandy

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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Phenanthrene is the simplest example of a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH). Herein, we exploit its relatively low melting point (101 °C) to prepare microparticles from molten phenanthrene droplets by conducting high-shear homogenization in a 3:1 water/ethylene glycol mixture at 105 °C using poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) as a non-ionic polymeric emulsifier. Scanning electron microscopy studies confirm that this protocol produces polydisperse phenanthrene microparticles with a spherical morphology: laser diffraction studies indicate a volume-average diameter of 25 ± 21 μm. Such projectiles are fired into an aluminum foil target at 1.87 km s–1 using a two-stage light gas gun. Interestingly, the autofluorescence exhibited by phenanthrene aids analysis of the resulting impact craters. More specifically, it enables assessment of the spatial distribution of any surviving phenanthrene in the vicinity of each crater. Furthermore, these phenanthrene microparticles can be coated with an ultrathin overlayer of polypyrrole, which reduces their autofluorescence. In principle, such core–shell microparticles should be useful for assessing the extent of thermal ablation that is likely to occur when they are fired into aerogel targets. Accordingly, polypyrrole-coated microparticles were fired into an aerogel target at 2.07 km s–1. Intact microparticles were identified at the end of carrot tracks and their relatively weak autofluorescence suggests that thermal ablation during aerogel capture did not completely remove the polypyrrole overlayer. Thus, these new core–shell microparticles appear to be useful model projectiles for assessing the extent of thermal processing that can occur in such experiments, which have implications for the capture of intact PAH-based dust grains originating from cometary tails or from plumes emanating from icy satellites (e.g., Enceladus) in future space missions.

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“…Because of its ultra-low density and fine mesostructure, aerogel is an effective capture medium for hypervelocity particles (Tsou, 1995), which has been used successfully in particle capture missions. Aerogel is a potential material for future missions (Tsou et al, 2012; Jones et al, 2014); therefore it is crucial to develop the ability to correctly identify particles in aerogel. As aerogel is translucent, optical methods can be utilized and morphological studies can be performed using laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Imaging Samples in Silica Aerogel Using an Experimental Point Spread Function

White

Ebel

2014

Microsc Microanal

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Light microscopy is a powerful tool that allows for many types of samples to be examined in a rapid, easy, and nondestructive manner. Subsequent image analysis, however, is compromised by distortion of signal by instrument optics. Deconvolution of images prior to analysis allows for the recovery of lost information by procedures that utilize either a theoretically or experimentally calculated point spread function (PSF). Using a laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM), we have imaged whole impact tracks of comet particles captured in silica aerogel, a low density, porous SiO2 solid, by the NASA Stardust mission. In order to understand the dynamical interactions between the particles and the aerogel, precise grain location and track volume measurement are required. We report a method for measuring an experimental PSF suitable for three-dimensional deconvolution of imaged particles in aerogel. Using fluorescent beads manufactured into Stardust flight-grade aerogel, we have applied a deconvolution technique standard in the biological sciences to confocal images of whole Stardust tracks. The incorporation of an experimentally measured PSF allows for better quantitative measurements of the size and location of single grains in aerogel and more accurate measurements of track morphology.

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Aerogel dust collection for in situ mass spectrometry analysis

Cited by 4 publications

References 35 publications

Icy ocean worlds, plumes, and tasting the water

Icy ocean worlds, plumes, and tasting the water

Synthesis of Autofluorescent Phenanthrene Microparticles via Emulsification: A Useful Synthetic Mimic for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon-Based Cosmic Dust

Imaging Samples in Silica Aerogel Using an Experimental Point Spread Function

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