2024 DXC Summary

Format, Dates & Attendance

The 73^rd Annual Conference on Applications of X-ray Analysis, more commonly known as the Denver X-ray Conference or DXC, was held 5 – 9 August 2024. The weeklong conference returned to the Denver area, visiting The Westin Westminster, Westminster, Colorado, USA. X-ray and materials scientists gathered at the conference to discuss various techniques, applications, software, instruments, and products for XRD and XRF analysis. The combination of attendees and exhibitors brought the attendance to over 375 X-ray scientists, with over 25% from outside the United States.

The technical program began with 16 half-day tutorial workshops held on Monday and Tuesday of conference week. Topics were categorized as either XRD, XRF, or Special Topic and focused on both beginner and advanced levels. 37 specialists were invited to participate as workshop instructors, and many provided handouts that were posted on a private website for attendees only. Topics included:

• XRF of Layered Structures
• Quantitative XRF
• X-ray Sources and Optics
• Sample Preparation for XRF
• Micro XRF
• Stress Analysis
• 2D Detectors
• XRF Trace Analysis

The Plenary Session, Bio-Medical Imaging, was held on Wednesday morning as the opening session for the oral talks that were presented during the next three days of conference week. Scott Misture, Alfred University, chaired the plenary, which began with an awards presentation.

The Birks Award

The Birks Award, given biennially to recognize outstanding contributions to the field of X-ray spectrometry, was presented to Piero A. Pianetta of Stanford University, USA. Dr. Pianetta received the award for his research using synchrotron radiation to develop ultra-sensitive Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence methods to measure trace metallic impurities on the surfaces of silicon wafers. This analysis set new benchmarks for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, as well as launching the development of advanced TXRF instrumentation. Piero was not able to attend the conference, he sent in a video acceptance speech that played during the Plenary Session.

2024 Robert L. Snyder Student Grant Award

Fourteen outstanding young scientists received the 2024 Robert L. Snyder Student Grant Award. The awardees and the works they presented at the conference were:

• Md (Ashik) Ashikuzzaman, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA, Comprehensive Analysis of Glauconite Sand: DCB Treatment Effects on Mineral Composition, XRD Poster Session
• Charles I. Ezekiel, The University of Iowa, USA, Solid Decolorization: Dismantling of an Orange-Red Zwitterionic Cocrystal by Multicomponent Milling, XRD Poster Session
• Lindsey Foote, Georgetown University, USA, Solid State Desolvation of 5-Fluorocytosine Forms, XRD Poster Session
• Beau Herrington, Keele University, United Kingdom, To Fix or Not to Fix: Deciphering Tissue Chemistry Though Multi-Model Analysis, XRD Poster Session –and– Exploring Prostate Cancer Biomarkers: Insights from Tissue Microenvironments and X-ray Scattering Analysis, Bio-Medical Session
• Zhao Jiang, University of Leeds, United Kingdom, Revealing Calcium Carbonate Transformation Under In Situ Heating Using 4D Sparse Ptychographic X-ray Nanotomography, Mining, Recycling, and Sustainable Materials Session
• Patrick Kraus, Technical University of Vienna, Austria, MAXI- macro XRF Scanning Device with mm Spot Size for A4 Area Scans, Micro XRF and Synchrotron Applications Session
• Shae London, Georgetown University, USA, Synthetic and Biogenic Ammonium Urates, XRD Poster Session
• Vinicius Pires Rezende, University of São Paulo, Brazil, Strategies For In Vivo Diagnosis of Fertilizer Absorption and Transport in Plants by X-ray Fluorescence, XRF Poster Session
• Niklas Pyrlik, University of Hamburg, Germany, Synchrotron-Based Multi-Modal Imaging Unveils Structure – Composition – Performance Correlations in CIGS Solar Cells, XRD Poster Session
• Monika Rasic, Loyola University Chicago, USA, Analysis of Heavy Metals in White Grape Vinegar, Trace Analysis Session
• Michael Arkadi Romanov, DePaul University, USA, Collagen Degradation Investigation in Archaeological Second Metacarpal Bones Using Synchrotron Wide-Angle X-ray Scattering, XRD Poster Session
• Hibiki Shirata, Meiji University, Japan, Crystalline Phase Analysis of Cosmetic Foundation Using Powder X-ray Diffractometry, XRD Poster Session
• Kimberly Poppy Sinclair, University of Washington, USA, Studying Aqueous Alteration on Mars Through Quantitative XRF from the Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry, Quantitative Analysis of XRF Session
• Alyssa Tovar, Loyola University Chicago, USA, Biomonitoring of Chicago’s Pilsen and Little Village Industrial Corridors Using Daucus Carota, Trace Analysis Session

Plenary Speakers

Following the awards presentation, the plenary session continued with three captivating talks by keynote speakers Stuart Stock, Northwestern University, USA, Olga Antipova, Argonne National Laboratory, USA, and Andrew Nelson, University of Western Ontario, Canada. Dr. Stock presented the talk, Beyond Jaws: The Mineralized Cartilage of Shark Vertebral Centra. Next was Dr. Antipova’s presentation on, X-ray Fluorescence Microscopy Brightens up Biological and Medical Research. Lastly, Dr. Nelson presented on Paleobiomedical Imaging: The Use of X-ray and CT to Study Egyptian and Peruvian Mummies. The session was very well attended and offered great insight on future advancements in science and technology.

2024 Robert L. Snyder Student Grant Award Winners.

Plenary Speakers (L-R) – Scott Misture (Session Chair), Andrew Nelson, Olga Antipova, and Stuart Stock.

From Wednesday afternoon through Friday morning, 17 half-day oral sessions were held. Over 100 presentations were organized in the oral sessions, with over 30 presentations given by invited speakers and experts in their respective fields. Topics included:

• Micro XRF and Synchrotron Applications
• Bio-Medical
• Non-ambient Measurements
• General XRF
• Machine Learning Techniques in X-ray Analysis
• Energy Materials Characterization
• Industrial Applications of XRD
• Industrial Applications of XRF

Posters were presented Monday and Tuesday evenings during the XRD and XRF poster sessions. Attendees were given the opportunity to preview electronic copies of the posters through the mobile app Whova. The respected judges chose the best posters, and the competition was strong.

We would like to thank three of our exhibitors for sponsoring additional Best Poster Awards during the XRF Poster Session: Amptek, Inc., Moxtek, Inc., and XOS.

The exhibit hall accommodated 30 companies displaying products and services for the X-ray community. The 2024 Onsite Program completes the listing of exhibitors and their product descriptions. The Denver X-ray Conference is very appreciative of their support this year.

Many of the exhibitors also sponsored the conference, including Amptek, Inc., Anton Paar, Bruker, Fenno-Aurum Oy, ICDD, KETEK GmbH, Materials Data, Moxtek, Inc., Petrick GmbH, PREMIER Lab Supply, Proto Manufacturing, Rigaku Americas, and XOS. The generosity of our sponsors helps to keep attendee costs low and the quality of the conference high. We are grateful for their support!

2024 DXC Exhibit Hall

To view the complete DXC Program, please visit the ‘Past DXC’ page of the conference website under the ‘About DXC’ tab at www.dxcicdd.com. The conference proceedings, Advances in X-ray Analysis, Volume 68, will be published in the summer of 2025. Select papers will also be published in the Powder Diffraction Journal. Please also visit the ‘Resources’ tab on the ICDD website, www.icdd.com, for free full access to manuscripts published in Volumes 40 through 67 of Advances in X-ray Analysis.

The Conference Services team at ICDD would like to thank the many people who volunteered their time and efforts to organize this event. Members of the DXC Organizing Committee, Session Chairs, Workshop Instructors, Invited and Contributed Speakers, and Exhibitors all played a role in bringing the community together. Special thanks to the attendees who joined us as well. The success of the event is attributed to each and every individual who participated, and we send our genuine thanks to all of you!

Save the Date!

In 2025, DXC will return to Maryland, 4-8 August, at The Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, Rockville, Maryland, USA. It is located right outside Washington, D.C., with easy access to the Washington Metro.