X-Ray Florescence Lab
X-Ray Florescence (XRF) is a technology that allows us to examine the elemental makeup of materials. We can apply this in so many ways to answer anthropological questions! The XRF@UNC lab has opportunities for students to get involved with hands-on research, supports student research projects, and collaborates with community organizations across Colorado and Wyoming. Interested in learning more? Contact Dr. Marian Hamilton (Marian.hamilton@hf-dc.net) with your research idea or to get involved with ongoing projects.
Undergraduate instruction in XRF technology is supported by CARES Act funding through UNC. Ongoing XRF research is supported by a sponsored research grant from Bruker Nano.
These are some of the projects supported by the lab since Fall 2021:
- Determining variation in the strontium-calcium ratios of Ugandan plants
- Differentiating frugivores and folivores among Ugandan primates
- Dietary analysis of Early North American primate teeth (in collaboration with the University of Wyoming’s Geology Museum)
- Measurements of Sr/Ca Ratios in Horse Teeth related to Weening, Dietary Change, and Climate (in collaboration with UC Boulder’s Archeological Museum)
- Measuring Iron Concentrations in Individuals with Cribra Orbitalia and Porotic Hyperostosis Using XRF - McNair Scholars project by Eduardo Maya
- Determining Dietary Niche in Primates Using Portable X-Ray Fluorescence - McNair Scholars project by Theresa Schwartz
- Identification of toxins in archeological artifacts
Contact Dr. Marian Hamilton to learn more!