The Maggard research laboratory is currently under construction and will house advanced instrumentation for the preparation and characterization of solid-state materials, such as ceramic metal oxides, metal chalcogenides and metal halides. After their preparation in high purity, both chemical and physical property measurements can be performed to probe their catalytic, electronic and magnetic properties. Many of these solid crystalline products require the use of high temperatures (up to 1200 C) as well as vacuum or inert gas conditions. Their characterization requires a range of techniques, including X-ray diffraction, spectroscopic methods, and reactive surface area measurements. In addition to the instrumentation available in the Maggard lab, research members utilize the Baylor University facilities for electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and the high performance computing center for electronic structure calculations.
The Maggard laboratory will also house gloveboxes for preparing reactions under inert gases, e.g., N2 or Ar, within reaction vessels such as fused silica tubes or processing tubes for high temperature furnaces. A large processing furnace (to 1200 C, shown on the right) can be used for annealing films or performing reactions under flowing gas streams. Vacuum lines are also used for sealing reactions within fused silica or pyrex tubes, and a Schlenk line setup for the reaction of air sensitive compounds. A bank of high temperature box furnaces can be utilized for solid state reactions, e.g., using molten salts or high-temperature ceramic methods.
The Maggard laboratory will also be equipped with several lower-temperature hydrothermal ovens (shown to the left) with temperature ranges of up to ~300-400 C, for reactions within both Teflon-lined and stainless steel reaction vessels. The lab has a number of small to large high-pressure vessels. A powder X-ray diffractometer is planned with the capability of situ high-temperature measurements under both vacuum and flowing inert/reactive gases, for probing the pathway and kinetics of reactions at elevated temperatures. The Maggard laboratory will also contain LED and high pressure arc lamps for simulated solar irradiation experiments and photoelectrochemical cells, such as for CO2 reduction and water splitting experiments with the aid of surface molecular catalyts.