synchrotron – Lightsources.org

Development of a methodology for the rapid determination of trace amounts of lead in cosmetic raw materials

2026/04/242026/04/30

The study was conducted by an interdisciplinary team of researchers from the SOLARIS National Synchrotron Radiation Centre, AGH University of Krakow, the Institute of Physics of the Jagiellonian University, and an industrial partner, Inglot Sp. z o.o. The aim of this work was to develop a rapid and sensitive method for the determination of trace amounts of lead in raw materials with potential cosmetic applications. The feasibility of using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence excited by monochromatic synchrotron radiation (SR-XRF) for the quantitative analysis of samples with complex and unknown matrices was evaluated. The use of synchrotron radiation enabled the achievement of very low detection limits with minimal sample preparation and short measurement times, and the results were validated using the ICP-OES method.

Cosmetic products play a significant role in human life, and their importance continues to increase alongside economic development and improved accessibility for various social groups. However, the growing number of consumers is accompanied by increasing concerns regarding cosmetic safety, particularly with respect to the presence of heavy metals. In the European Union, cosmetic products are regulated under Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009, according to which lead and its compounds are listed as prohibited substances. Due to natural processes and the ubiquitous presence of ultra-low concentrations of elements in the environment, achieving their complete absence is not feasible, which necessitates the use of reliable and sensitive analytical methods enabling their control at trace levels.

Despite the existence of national recommendations concerning permissible heavy metal contents in cosmetics, harmonised international standards are still lacking. For example, in the United States and Canada a limit of 10 μg/g of lead is recommended, while in Germany the recommended limit is 5 μg/g. Heavy metals, including lead, may enter the human body via oral, inhalation or dermal routes, leading to bioaccumulation and serious adverse health effects, such as DNA damage, disruption of enzymatic activity, or abnormalities in calcium metabolism. Particular attention is given to products applied in the vicinity of the mouth and eyes, due to the risk of ingestion and the increased permeability of the thin skin in these areas.

High-resolution imaging provides clues to lung disease

2025/04/152025/04/24

Researchers have imaged lung tissue affected by Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) with nanometre resolution. They managed to capture differences in the distribution of trace elements compared to a healthy lung. The result is a step towards better understanding the body at the nanoscale and managing this and other currently untreatable diseases.

The distribution of chemical elements in our cells can say a lot about their function and processes. To see this distribution, we need a method with a resolution that is high enough to see details inside cells. The method should also be sensitive to differences in chemical content. The structures inside the cell are on the nanometre scale, and Nano X-ray Fluorescence (Nano-XRF) offers a powerful imaging method that fulfils both criteria. The technique is relatively young and has been used in the research community for about 10–15 years.

“Nano-XRF is becoming more prominent as synchrotron facilities are advancing. Its growing use is linked to improvements in synchrotron technology, such as brighter beams and better focusing, that now allow nanometre-scale spatial resolution and higher sensitivity, enabling applications that were not possible before,” says Bryan Falcones, a postdoc at the Department for Lung Biology at Lund University and visiting research fellow at MAX IV.

Read more on MAXIV website

ESRF hosts Lightsources.org members’ meeting in Grenoble

2023/10/042023/10/06

Science communicators from light source facilities within Lightsources.org, the global collaboration of 23 synchrotrons and 7 Free Electron Lasers, gathered at The European Synchrotron (ESRF) last week to share knowledge, ideas, and strategic plans. The in-person meeting, the first to be held in Europe since before the pandemic, also focussed on developing a special programme of activities to celebrate the 20^th Anniversary of Lightsources.org in 2024.

Guest speakers included Terry O’Connor, EMBL’s Head of communication, and Daniela Antonio, CERN’s Social media and community manager, both of whom shared insights into their strategies, activities and priorities in the ever changing landscape of 21^st century science communication.

Delphine Chenevier, Head of communications at the ESRF, comments, “Since we last hosted a Lightsources.org collaboration meeting, the ESRF has undergone a major upgrade to a fourth-generation high-energy synchrotron. This has significantly increased our scientific capabilities. It was wonderful to be able to show colleagues several beamlines where ESRF staff outlined the research that can now be done across a range of fields including health, materials, environmental sciences, cultural heritage, and palaeontology.”

Isabelle Boscaro-Clarke, Diamond’s Head of Impact, Communication and Engagement, adds “One of the most valuable aspects of being a member of Lightsources.org is the connections you develop with colleagues in similar roles around the world. Our in-person meetings give us the opportunity to share both the triumphs and the challenges and provide the time needed to have in-depth discussions. These discussions help us to strengthen our communications programmes at an individual facility level and plan the future development of the Lightsources.org collaboration as it continues to provide one voice for the brightest science.”

Lightsources.org was established in 2004 and, as the 20^th Anniversary approaches, the collaboration will be focusing on a new Vision and Strategic Plan for 2024-2044 along with a special programme of activities to raise the profile of Lightsources.org and its members throughout 2024.

If you are interested in becoming a member of Lightsources.org, please visit our About Lightsources.org page or contact Silvana Westbury, our Project Manager, at webmaster@lightsources.org

To keep up to date with light source news, career opportunities, events, proposal deadlines and upgrade information from our member facilities, please subscribe to our weekly e-newsletter

Top Image: Lightsources.org members outside the ESRF, Tuesday 26th September 2023. Left to right: Agnieszka Cudek, SOLARIS, Poland, Ana Belén Martínez, ALBA, Spain, Laia Torres Aribau, ALBA, Spain, Beth Schlesinger, APS (Argonne), USA, Emma Corness, Diamond, UK, Miriam Arrell, SLS/SwissFEL (PSI) Switzerland, Silvana Westbury, Lightsources.org, Isabelle Boscaro-Clarke, Diamond, UK, Florentine Krawatzek, BESSY II (HZB), Germany, Wiebke Laasch, DESY Photon Science, Germany, Delphine Chenevier, ESRF, France

Credit: ESRF

New CEO appointed for the UK’s national synchrotron, Diamond Light Source

2023/08/112023/08/09

Harwell Campus, UK – 9^th August 2023, Professor Gianluigi Botton has been appointed as new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Diamond Light Source

Professor Botton is a renowned expert in microscopy and spectroscopy with an impressive track record in research and funding, having secured more than $50M as Principal Investigator and $90M as a co-investigator and has more than 350 peer-reviewed publications. His work has been cited more than 34,000 times. Over the course of his highly successful career, Gianluigi has been awarded the Microbeam Analysis Society’s Presidential Award (2020), the Metal Physics Award of the Canadian Materials Science Conference (2017); he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (2018) and Fellow of the Microscopy Society of America (2014).

Protecting Saskatchewan lakes from contamination

2020/10/192020/10/19

Using the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, a University of Saskatchewan-led research team has developed a method for monitoring uranium contaminants in mine tailings using samples from McClean Lake, SK.

While mining companies work to extract as much uranium as possible from processed ore, small amounts remain in the solid and liquid residue—called tailings—left over from the milling process.

To protect the downstream environment from potential impacts of the solid waste, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission requires companies to monitor the chemistry of uranium and other potentially harmful elements in their tailings facilities.

Numerous researchers have studied the chemistry of nickel, arsenic, selenium and molybdenum in Orano Canada’s tailings management facility at McClean Lake, but to date little was known about residual uranium. One of the challenges has been the extremely low concentrations of the element left after processing at Orano’s ore mill, which began operating in 1997.

Read more on the Canadian Light Source website

Image: Arthur Situm conducting research at SXRMB beamline. Photo by David Stobbe for USask.

Opening of ESRF-Extremely Brilliant Source (EBS), a new generation of synchrotron

2020/08/252020/08/25

25 August 2020 – A brilliant new light shines in Grenoble, France, with the opening of the ESRF-Extremely Brilliant Source (ESRF-EBS), the first-of-a-kind fourth-generation high-energy synchrotron. After a 20-month shutdown, scientific users are back at the ESRF to carry out experiments with the new EBS source.

The ring-shaped machine, 844 metres in circumference, generates X-ray beams 100 times brighter than its predecessor’s, and 10 trillion times brighter than medical X-rays. This intense X-ray beam hails a new era for science to understand the complexity of materials and living matter at the nanometric level. ESRF-EBS will contribute to tackling global challenges in key areas such as health, environment, energy and new industrial materials, and to unveiling hidden secrets of our natural and cultural heritage through the non-destructive investigation of precious artefacts and palaeontological treasures. A shining example of international cooperation, EBS has been funded by 22 countries joining forces to construct this innovative and world-unique research infrastructure with an investment of 150 million euros over 2015-2022, lighting the way for more than a dozen projects worldwide, including in the United States and Japan.

“The opening of the first high-energy fourth-generation synchrotron to users is a landmark for the whole X-ray science community. We are all thrilled to envisage the revolutionary science to be carried out and the new applications that will start to emerge. All ESRF staff should be commended for such an achievement, attained on time and on budget in spite of the current circumstances,” says Miguel Ángel García Aranda, chair of the ESRF council.

Read more on the ESRF website

Image: Panoramic view of the ESRF. Credit: S. Candé.

ARIEs as key resources for the five Horizon Europe Missions

2020/07/282020/07/28

Moon-shot missions, such as those of Horizon Europe, require exceptional solutions, and the world-leading Analytical Research Infrastructures of Europe (ARIEs) are one of the key places those solutions can be sought. The ARIE Joint Position Paper highlighting how the common, complementary approach will help address the societal challenges of the Horizon Europe Missions framework programme was presented today.

“The Analytical Research Infrastructures of Europe (ARIEs) provide unique windows into the workings of the world around us”, says Caterina Biscari, Chair of LEAPS and Director of the ALBA Synchrotron in Spain. “The cross-border cooperation within Europe allows for harnessing the power of its analytical research infrastructures collectively, to fuel the cutting-edge R&D required by the five Horizon Europe Missions. Nowhere else in the world is this readily possible.”

The ARIEs are centres of scientific and technological excellence, delivering services, data and know-how to a growing and diverse user community of more than 40,000 researchers in academia and industry, across a range of domains: the physical sciences, energy, engineering, the environment and the earth sciences, as well as medicine, health, food and cultural heritage. They include powerful photon sources, such as synchrotrons, laser systems and free-electron lasers; sources of neutrons, ions and other particle beams; and facilities dedicated to advanced electron-microscopy and high magnetic fields.

Read more on the MAX IV website