A pair of scientists at Furman University has been awarded a three-year, $1-million grant from the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation to create a prototype of a transportable, light-weight mass spectrometer for analyzing chemical compounds within the air.

Mac Gilliland, assistant professor of chemistry and Mary Elizabeth Anderson, professor of chemistry, will work with engineers and scientists at 908 Devices, a mass spec producer in Boston. At least a dozen Furman undergraduate college students may even work on the challenge, giving them expertise in chemistry, gadget manufacturing and commercialization that few college students at undergraduate establishments have.

“We are extremely grateful to the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation for this award,” mentioned Gilliland who has intensive expertise in mass spectrometry, or mass spec. “This award affords us the chance to do excellent science and technology development, and it gives our students hands-on opportunities to do research and interact with industry in way students at many universities are unable to do. I’m excited to get to work with our students.”

Ethan Hughey ’26, Katherine Euston ’26 and Day Maglich ’25 work with Professor Mary Elizabeth Anderson in a chemistry lab.

Mass spectrometry exactly identifies chemical compounds by their molecular weight. The devices are like molecular scales, utilizing electrical and magnetic fields to “weigh” molecules, Gilliland says. Beckman granted two different awards for the design of various mass spec gadgets. Both have been at massive public analysis universities: the University of Wisconsin and the University of Washington.

Mass spec devices are widespread in analysis, medication and a wide range of different settings for drug growth, most cancers screening, forensics and lots of extra functions. However, mass specs are sometimes restricted to laboratory settings due to the ability necessities and complexity of the techniques.

The award standards name for the event of an instrument sufficiently small to slot in a backpack, or smaller, that measures low ranges of light-weight atmospheric compounds, like unstable natural chemical compounds, or VOCs, which embody benzene, toluene and xylene, that may trigger well being hazards. Making an instrument that meets these standards and is reasonably priced and moveable has been a serious hurdle.

Before evaluation by mass spec, the compounds have to be captured from the air. That’s the place Anderson’s work is available in. She focuses on metallic natural frameworks, or MOFs, nanoporous supplies that act as chemical sponges.

“Part of our approach to detecting these VOCs is to tailor our MOF ‘sponges’ with nanopores that trap molecules of interest, separating them from the rest of the gases in the atmosphere,” Anderson mentioned. “This will be especially important because VOCs are often present at concentrations around one out of every one billion molecules.”

The potential functions for the Furman mass spec embody air monitoring in industrial, hazard, and environmental eventualities. For instance, the expertise may detect a leak in a manufacturing unit earlier than it turns into harmful or to observe emissions from pine timber because the local weather adjustments.

The purpose is to have a working instrument by December 2026. The workforce from Furman will work with engineers from 908 Devices to construct a workable mannequin earlier than finalizing the design and making it smaller. It’s probably that mental property might be developed for brand spanking new gadgets or processes that might be invented, which may result in licensing agreements sooner or later.

Furman has an extended historical past of success incomes awards from The Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation. The college has frequently obtained aggressive undergraduate funding for the reason that Beckman Scholars program started in 1999.