Joining the Martin Group for Beamtime at the Australian Synchrotron

Preliminary data collection on filters for PFAS compounds!

The group was excited to join some preliminary data collection alongside Forrest Foundation alumni Jacob Martin and student Callum Wood of the Curtin Carbon Group for a stint of beamtime at the Australian Synchrotron.

Special thanks is due to Mark Hackett from the School of Molecular and Life Sciences for coordinating efforts amongst Curtin researchers to make use of synchrotron facilities, and to Australian Synchrotron staff and the beamline scientists at the BioSAXS beamline.

SAXS or Small-Angle X-ray Scattering, utilises the bright flux from the synchrotron beam to measure the forward scattering of x-rays interacting with a sample. Compared to wide angle techniquies, that focus on interatomic structure (such as in crystalline material), SAXS instead is used to determine morphology at the nanometre scale such as in nanoparticles.

In these preliminary experiments, carbon based materials are explored as filters for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS, also known as ‘forever chemicals’) as a means of purifying drinking water and preventing their build up in the body.