Ion Micro-Probe Facility (IMF)

The ability to precisely and accurately measure the chemical and isotopic compositions of materials on very fine scales, down to only a few thousanths of a metre, is critical for understanding and evaluating the whole spectrum of Earth and environmental earth system processes, and hence finding ways to solve or manage the societal issues that arise from them. This ability - quantitative microanalysis - is central to modern Earth System Science.
Processes that occur on Earth often dictate particular behaviours in elements and isotope ratios. Precise determinations of these sensitive elements that occur in very, to extremely, low abundances in minerals, glasses, organic remains and skeletal materials allow geoscientists to investigate the effects of processes on different timescales. Current applications include, for example, evaluating the conditions of mineral and ore deposit formation, reconstructing the evolution of past volcanic eruptions in order to constrain future hazard, determining fluctuations in seawater surface temperatures over time and their relationships with global climate change, and even monitoring of long-term climatic variations from cave deposits.
Accurate and precise isotopic measurements of stable and radiogenic isotopes further enable geoscientists to measure ocean acidification associated with global climate change, quantify the amounts and types of sources for fluids involved in a large variety of important earth processes from the surface to the deepest mantle, and determine the ages of ancient and recent rocks and minerals formed at both low- and high-temperatures.
This proposal is to provide continued UK science community support for a world-class laboratory that enables the UK to excel in the quantitative microanalysis of Earth materials, and explore fundamental questions that have consequences for the planet, the environment and its population: the Edinburgh Ion Microprobe Facility.

See our attached 2 page Pathways to Impact statement for details.

The Edinburgh Ion Microprobe facility (IMF) is a world leading facility with an international reputation, pioneering the development and application of SIMS across a broad range of applications in the Earth and Environmental Sciences. The IMF has supported innovative research that has generated sustained impact over a wide range of sectors. The reach of this impact has been global and has been built on the foundations of the ground-breaking science that the IMF has supported.

The IMF's track record in supporting high-impact science is evidenced by the well-established and continuing links to several institutions. The facility has supported work at 28 institutions across the United Kingdom between 2012-2017. This work has created impact across a range of sectors, and has generated research that has underpinned several impact case studies presented by Universities throughout the UK. In order to sustain impact from current work the IMF will maintain and strengthen relationships with existing institutions and users, and where possible develop new links to broaden the scope for realising impact. The main focus will be on three areas in which the IMF has a track record of delivering significant and wide reaching impact: Policy, Academic and Commercial. Within these three areas there are multiple potential beneficiaries who might benefit over different timescales.

Policy Impacts: Two important areas of impact are in Natural Hazards, in particular volcanic eruptions, and Fisheries, focused on salmon migration pathways and their impact on fish harvesting policy. These are described in further detail in the Pathways attachment.

Academic: The IMF has long supported blue skies, curiosity driven research, and the continuation of this is essential for the academic community and the realisation of longer term impact. Without this the impacts previously realised would not have been possible. The IMF is a world leader and has developed standard protocols for the worldwide SIMS community. Alongside this it has played a key role in the personal and professional development of researchers (who have taken this expertise and applied it globally, while continuing to collaborate with the IMF). In order to support this capacity building we will continue to support the high class researcher training and development.

Commercial: Two important areas of impact are in Mining and Hydrocarbons / Carbon Capture and Storage. In the case of Mining, IMF trace element analysis provides prospecting tools for diamonds and precious metal exploration. In the case of hydrocarbons and CCS, IMF data has been critical in advancing understanding of the processes that control the origin and evolution of subsurface reservoir quality, and more applications are on the horizon in CCS and unconventional hydrocarbons characterisation.

These areas of impact are facilitated by IMF participation Supporting Networks based on user contacts, bespoke advertising, web-based resources and social media, all to be underpinned by a new social media and online strategy. IMF will engage proactively with the School of GeoSciences in its building of international links to ensure that the capabilities of the IMF are highlighted in relevant initiatives in these countries.
Evaluating, tracking and recording impact will be based on working closely with users of the facility to ensure a rigorous documentation and analysis of impact. This data is collected annually, and where appropriate we will highlight impact case studies on the IMF website. We will encourage users to record impact in relevant platforms (e.g. PURE), which will help evidence future impact case studies. The IMF will also work closely with the School of GeoSciences impact coordinator, who will help users identify appropriate ways of recording and evaluating the impact of their research, as part of their ongoing training and development.