A joint effort from professors across multiple disciplines at Virginia Tech, including Amanda Morris, John Morris and Louis Madson from chemistry and Kathy Lu from material science and engineering, earned the major NSF Instrumentation Award in 2015 to receive the latest in PHI's line of scanning XPS microprobe instruments - the VersaProbe III, only the second university in U.S. to do so.  This $788,360 National Science Foundation award leverages the expertise of PIs and senior personnel from across multiple disciplines to explore emerging energy technologies, which will significantly improve our understanding of the effects of surface chemistry on efficacy. This award will advance research and education at all levels to explore energy solutions (e.g., energy storage and generation), thereby solidifying VT as a leader in the energy field.