Dust Samples from Wal-Mart

Below are our samples we collected from the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 800 Loudon Road in Latham, New York. We took two samples to increase and maintain accuracy in our data analysis. To be as specific as possible, we took two samples from a corner near the milk isle where we were able to locate the most amount of dust. It was also near an entrance/exit for shipments from the back storage room, so we thought it would be interesting to see what elements might have been compiled here.

Sample 1

Below is the raw image before any scanning. Our raw images are obtained once we load the sample into the SEM and navigate around the sample to find an adequate location to scan. The locations we pick are based on how much dust or material we can see in a single viewing field under the SEM.  

Below is our Sample 1 of the Wal-Mart Dust. This picture still has the outline of the raw image behind it to see where the elements are found in relation to the sample itself.

Below is Sample 1 from Wal-Mart when we removed the raw image. Here we can clearly see where each elements lie on the sample.

Below is our spectrum from Sample 1 of the Wal-Mart Dust. Note that there may be bumps or peaks in the spectrum that do not have an element labeled to them. These peaks are most likely either Oxygen or Carbon that we have to remove for all of our samples because they are found in the adhesive tape. Those elements cannot be accounted for in our dust sample. 

Below is our Excel Spreadsheet that was collected after quantifying our data for Sample 1 of the Wal-Mart dust. We can see that Aluminum(25.44%), Calcium(19.02%), and Silicon(15.46%) make up most of this sample. As for elements like Magnesium(0.43%) they make up little of this sample. 

Bruker Nano GmbH, Germany				5/31/2016
	Quantax
Results	Dust 1
Date:	5/31/2016
Element	AN	series	[wt.%]	[norm. wt.%]	[norm. at.%]	Error in wt.% (1 Sigma)
Sodium	11	K-series	0.35056942	4.699143377	6.353213409	0.051093223
Magnesium	12	K-series	0.032119891	0.430545181	0.550595276	0.02782413
Aluminium	13	K-series	1.898447832	25.44739515	29.31473508	0.121235748
Silicon	14	K-series	1.153957107	15.46800601	17.118336	0.077798496
Phosphorus	15	K-series	0.643271038	8.622608438	8.652749081	0.052394111
Sulfur	16	K-series	0.638206277	8.554718772	8.292210589	0.04996107
Chlorine	17	K-series	0.776429732	10.40750969	9.124453917	0.053103283
Potassium	19	K-series	0.547826914	7.343245209	5.837669854	0.043105317
Calcium	20	K-series	1.419455331	19.02682818	14.75603679	0.06816851
		Sum:	7.460283542	100	100

For Sample 1 of the Wal-Mart dust we had to remove the elements Oxygen, Carbon, Zinc, Copper, and Iron. Oxygen and Carbon had to be removed because it is found in the adhesive tape. As for Zinc, Copper, and Iron, they had to be removed because they had little to no peak on the spectrum. Therefore, they cannot be accounted for in our data analysis.

Below is the video we took of collecting Sample 1 from Wal-Mart.

Sample 2

Below is our Sample 2 from the Wal-Mart Dust. First image is the raw image. The big pockets are most likely air pockets trapped under the carbon tape that we were unable to remove when prepping the sample onto the stage.

Below is our Sample 2 of the Wal-Mart dust with the raw image behind it. We always did this first to help us get a rough idea of where the elements are with respect to the dust itself.

Below is our Sample 2 of the Wal-Mart dust without the raw image with it. Here we can evidently see the giant clusters and collections of Silicon in specific spots in the sample. We found this very interesting. 

Below is our spectrum for our Sample 2 of the Wal-Mart dust. Even though there were spots of a lot of bundled silicon, the sample still consisted of mostly Aluminum; therefore Aluminium's peak is larger than Silicons.

Below is our Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet of the elements when we quantified the data. Aluminium(33.32%), Silicon(27.59%), and Calcium(23.65%) made up most of sample 2. 

Between data collections we liked to stay busy and get in a couple of quick games of Rock, Paper, Scissors. Data collections roughly took about 9 minutes which was enough for best 2 out of 3.

Bruker Nano GmbH, Germany				6/1/2016
	Quantax
Results	Dust 1
Date:	6/1/2016
Element	AN	series	[wt.%]	[norm. wt.%]	[norm. at.%]	Error in wt.% (1 Sigma)
Sodium	11	K-series	0.067658035	1.684008356	2.213230546	0.0313319
Aluminium	13	K-series	1.338969406	33.32694564	37.32035956	0.09330908
Silicon	14	K-series	1.108854389	27.59938336	29.69164497	0.07619383
Sulfur	16	K-series	0.551751682	13.73309819	12.94019368	0.04714041
Calcium	20	K-series	0.950444616	23.65656446	17.83457124	0.05456616
		Sum:	4.017678129	100	100

For Sample 2 of the Wal-Mart dust we found it specially interesting that the elements can clump together like they did in the sample 2. Nothing harmful or life threatening was found in the Wal-Mart dust. This is really good considering Wal-Mart is a main provider of food and almost anything you may need in your everyday activities. The high number of Calcium found in the sample is probably due to the fact we collected the dust near the milk isle. Milk is known to be made up of a lot of Calcium; so this can be a hypothesis of why a lot was found in our sample. 

Below is our video of collecting Sample 2 from Wal-Mart.