Matisoff’s laboratories contains facilities for collecting and processing sediments, the extraction of sediment pore fluids, chemical analysis of sediments and pore water, alpha and gamma spectroscopy of sediment and water, microcosms for studying particle and solute mixing and chemical exchange in the presence of benthic invertebrates, and a high resolution automated gamma scan system that permits unaided continuous monitoring of radiotracers in sediment and porewaters in laboratory microcosms. He also has facilities for sampling and analysis of groundwater collected from both rock aquifers and from seepage across the sediment-water interface.

There are two gamma spectrometer systems in Matisoff’s radiation laboratory: An EG&G Ortec N-type HPGe detector system and a Canberra Low Energy Germanium Detector (LEGe) system. He also has other gamma spectroscopy equipment including a custom designed gamma scanner. The gamma scanner is a high precision X-Y positioning system that is computer operated and interfaced with an Amptek CZT (cadmium-zinc-telluride) or a collimated NaI(Tl) detector and an EG&G Ortec Ace 8K MCA board which allows continuous, unattended, sequential sampling of gamma transmission. The gamma scanner is used to determine bulk density of soils and sediments and for conducting experiments on solute and particle bioturbation by infaunal macrobenthos. The radiation lab also has a Min X-Ray portable X-Ray unit.

Matisoff maintains an aquatic chemistry laboratory which is equipped with deionized water, sinks, fume hoods, and typical laboratory equipment for pumping, filtering, and chemically treating water and sediment, including centrifuges and a Sharples continuous flow centrifuge. Lab equipment includes analytical balances, ovens, pipetting equipment, miscellaneous glassware, electrodes and meters for pH, specific ions, and DO, miscellaneous aquaria, a Dionex Ion Chromatograph, an HP Gas Chromatograph, a LECO C/S analyzer, a Perkin-Elmer Lambda UV/Vis Spectrometer, a Perkin-Elmer AAnalyst atomic absorption spectrophotometer, an Ocean Optics UV/Vis Spectrometer, a homemade glovebox, a Turner Designs Aquafluor Fluorometer, a Paar High Pressure Stirred Reactor and 6 homemade high pressure rocking reactors, miscellaneous computers, digital cameras, etc.

Major field equipment includes an RD Instruments Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler, several Telog pressure transducers and data loggers, a SoilTest Stratascout resistivity meter, a Geonics ground conductivity meter, and miscellaneous sediment and soil coring and sampling devices.