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NMR and EPR

EMSL houses NMR instruments with frequencies up to 900 MHz, as well as an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer. EMSL staff are active in developing a variety of probes and techniques to complement their collection of state-of-the-art magnets. NMR capabilities at EMSL are widely used in the following topical areas:

• Interfacial and in situ chemistry – EMSL offers users solid-state NMR techniques for low-gamma nuclei detection and a full range of magic-angle spinning methodologies to study catalytic, advanced material, geochemical, and biological systems in their near-native state and in real time.
• Interfacial and in situ biology – NMR resources are available for structural biology investigations to determine the structure of large molecular assemblies and to monitor their changes in response to environmental influences. In addition, EMSL offers tools for functional 'omics research, including metabolomics, and a bio-magic angle spinning (BioMAS)/900-MHz NMR system to explore biological membrane proteins in the solid state.

• Environmental chemistry – EMSL offers a unique NMR system for radiological studies. Users can perform magic-angle spinning of highly radioactive samples with a novel triple-containment rotor. These tools allow users to apply NMR techniques to critical areas of radiological research, including study of radioactive waste processing and storage.
• Metallocomplexes – EMSL emphasizes studies of transition metal complexes relevant to biological, environmental, and catalysis systems. BioMAS and low-temperature probes are used to determine conformational changes in membrane protein complexes involving metal clusters as followed by solid-state NMR and by pulsed EPR.

Capability Detail

Refer to the table below for a full listing, which leads to complete information about each of EMSL's NMR and EPR instruments. Brief details about the primary NMR and EPR tools available to EMSL users immediately follow.

• Eleven NMR spectrometers, ranging from 300 MHz to 900 MHz with capabilities for high-field liquid-state, solid-state, and micro-imaging techniques
• One pulsed EPR spectrometer, for probing metal centers in biological and materials systems
• NMR with radiological capabilities
• NMR with metabolomics capabilities to study microbial systems and biofluids
• Extreme-temperature probes, including high-temperature probes to study catalysts in their near-native states and low-temperature probes to study metalloprotein chemistry and structure
• Novel BioMAS/900 MHz system for bio-solid studies
• Combined optical and magnetic resonance microscopy instrument
• Virtual NMR tools for remote access to spectrometer systems

All Related Publications Related Publications

1. Apolipoprotein AI tertiary structures determine stability and phospholipid-binding activity of discoidal high-density lipoprotein particles of different sizes.
2. An integrated top-down and bottom-up strategy for broadly characterizing protein isoforms and modifications.
3. Changes in the quaternary structure of amelogenin when adsorbed onto surfaces.
4. Nanotechnology-Based Electrochemical Sensors for Biomonitoring Chemical Exposures .
5. The Structure and Purity of a Reference Dye Standard used for Quantification of C.I. Solvent Red 164 in Fuels.

Related Research Highlights

1. Probing Reaction Pathways Using in situ ¹H NMR Spectroscopy (Hydrogen Does the Two Step)
2. The Synergy Between Molecular Theory and Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy (Model System for NMR)

NMR and EPR Capabilities Available at EMSL

Instrument	Contact
EPR Spectrometer Pulsed, ENDOR/ELDOR	Amonette, Jim Hoyt, David W Walter,Eric D
NMR Spectrometer: 2 Tesla Horizontal Bore Varian Unity Plus (Imaging)	Ford,Joseph J Minard, Kevin R
NMR Spectrometer: 300 MHz WB CMX for Solids (and liquids)	Burton, Sarah D
NMR Spectrometer: 300 MHz WB Tecmag Discovery (radioactive samples)	Burton, Sarah D Cho, Herman M
NMR Spectrometer: 500 MHz NB CMX for Liquids (and solids)	Burton, Sarah D
NMR Spectrometer: 500 MHz WB Bruker Advance Imaging	Ford,Joseph J
NMR Spectrometer: 500 MHz WB Varian NMR System (solids)	Ford,Joseph J
NMR Spectrometer: 600 MHz NB Varian Inova	Hoyt, David W Isern, Nancy
NMR Spectrometer: 600 MHz NB Varian Inova - Cryoprobe	Hoyt, David W
NMR Spectrometer: 600 MHz NB Varian LC-NMR System - metabolomics cryoprobe	Hoyt, David W Isern, Nancy
NMR Spectrometer: 750 MHz NB (17.6 Tesla) Varian Inova	Ford,Joseph J Hoyt, David W Isern, Nancy
NMR Spectrometer: 800 MHz (18.8 Tesla) Varian Inova	Hoyt, David W Isern, Nancy
NMR Spectrometer: 900 MHz (21.1 Tesla)	Hoyt, David W

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory
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emsl@pnl.gov
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Last Updated: February 2010