Bio
Dr. Bruce A. Tomkins received his B. A. (1973) from the University of Connecticut and his M. S. (1975) and Ph. D. (1978) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He joined the Analytical Chemistry Division of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in July, 1978, and specialized in the analysis of trace levels of organic compounds in a wide variety of matrices. These included carcinogens and other constituents of fossil fuels and cigarette smoke. He developed and tested analytical methods for trace levels of organic pollutants in radioactive solids and liquids, and explosives in soils and waters. Some of his work involved the detection of part-per-trillion concentrations of organochlorine pesticides and part-per-billion levels of chemical nerve agent by-products in groundwaters.
He tested procedures for quantitating hydrazine in air using coulometrically-generated bromine. Other work included the quantitation of calixarene complexing agents used in the cleanup of aqueous waste with mixed fission products using high-pressure liquid chromatography. In addition, he certified a procedure for quantifying n-nitrosodimethylamine in contaminated groundwater samples at part-per-trillion levels.
Dr. Tomkins joined the Organic and Biological Mass Spectrometry Group of the Chemical Sciences Division at ORNL in 2004 and continued to develop methods for the ultratrace determination of specific compounds, but now using state-of-the-art mass spectrometric detection. These methods included the determination of caffeine and goldenseal alkaloids directly from a thin-layer chromatography plate using desorption electrospray mass spectrometry, and the evaluation of the “chemical signatures” of selected chemical warfare agents on painted wallboard using various mass spectrometric methods. He worked extensively with the Bio Energy Science Center (BESC) at ORNL and quantitated higher-order cellodextrins in the enzymatic digests of plant materials using ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray mass spectrometry.
He is currently working with the Radioactive Materials Analytical Laboratory, and is responsible for performing quantitative determinations of selected alpha emitters and other pollutants in environmental samples taken from the ORNL site.