SOURCES SOUGHT
B -- COSMOGENIC NUCLIDE ANALYSIS
- Notice Date
- 2/28/2020 12:45:16 PM
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541380
— Testing Laboratories
- Contracting Office
- OFC OF ACQUISITION GRANTS-DENVER DENVER CO 80225 USA
- ZIP Code
- 80225
- Solicitation Number
- 140G0220Q0071
- Response Due
- 3/5/2020 12:00:00 AM
- Archive Date
- 03/20/2020
- Point of Contact
- Carter, Christopher
- E-Mail Address
-
cjcarter@usgs.gov
(cjcarter@usgs.gov)
- Awardee
- null
- Description
- COSMOGENIC NUCLIDE ANALYSIS SOURCES SOUGHT: The U.S. Geological Survey is conducting a MARKET SURVEY to determine the interest and capability of any firm eligible to compete under NAICS code 541380 with a Small Business Size Standard $16.50 M for an upcoming requirement for the USGS Geoscience and Environmental Change Science Center (GECSC)in Denver, CO to provide Cosmogenic Nuclide analysis. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. ALL COST ASSOCIATED WITH PROVIDING INFORMATION AS REQUESTED BY THIS SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE SHALL BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE CONTRACTOR. Submission is voluntary. This requirement is for Cosmogenic Nuclide analysis. In accordance with its mission to understand the geologic hazards of the United States, the USGS is often tasked with understanding the history and pacing of hazardous events by dating motion on faults, and the emplacement of mass wasting and debris flow/flood deposits. Over historic timescales the hazards recorded by these geologic features produce earthquakes, landslides and floods that damage infrastructure and endanger the safety of the public. Over geologic timescales the same geologic features record a long history containing many hazardous events that provide a more complete view of the rates and potential magnitude of risk for a given area. Defining the age of these geologic features is key to understanding this long-term risk but requires sophisticated radiometric dating techniques to discern with accuracy. Cosmogenic nuclide surface exposure dating is one of the best techniques for defining the ages of these types of deposits because it dates the exposure and/or burial of common minerals derived directly from the deposits of interest to cosmic radiation at the Earth�s surface. This quite effectively provides an age for the rapid emplacement and stabilization of sedimentary deposits like moraines, landslides, and debris flows, and the scarps of faults that cut them. The ability to apply this technique to a wide range of deposits caused by geohazards, over a range of hundreds to millions of years makes it a key tool to defining accurate geohazard histories and rates that inform risk anywhere in the nation. The most commonly applied cosmogenic nuclides are the isotopes beryllium-10 (10Be) and aluminum-26 (26Al) measured in the mineral quartz. These nuclides are advantageous because 1) quartz is the most abundant rock forming mineral and is therefore available in most locations; 2) 10Be and 26Al have fast rates of buildup in quartz (~4 and ~26 atoms per gram per year, respectively) and 3) slow rates of radioactive decay; so that they can be applied over both short and long timescales. Critically, measuring the ratio of 10Be and 26Al in deeply buried sediments allows calculation of the ages of geologically important deposits that are no longer at the surface, which can greatly extend the geohazard records of interest. Therefore, the ability to accurately measure both isotopes in quartz by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) is highly important. Cosmogenic nuclide dating typically involves 6 laboratory steps: 1. Mechanical cleaning and crushing rock hand samples collected in the field. 2. Density, magnetic and/or chemical techniques for separation of mineral phases to isolate and purify quartz. 3. Dissolution and isotopic spiking of individual quartz aliquots for each sample, followed by separation of pure beryllium and aluminum using ion exchange column chemistry. 4. Elemental analysis of native non-cosmogenic beryllium and aluminum by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry or similar techniques to determine non-cosmogenic contribution to quartz chemistry. 5. Pressing of pure beryllium and aluminum oxide separates into cathode targets followed by measurement of beryllium and aluminum isotope ratios by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry. 6. Assimilation and reduction of the data generated in the previous steps to generate an age for each sample from the concentrations of cosmogenic isotopes in quartz and application of physically/geologically calibrated nuclide production rate scaling models for the Earth. A scope of work will be provided with any solicitation that may be issued. The Government is not required to issue a solicitation. Responses to this announcement are requested from Small Businesses. In response to this announcement, please indicate your firm's socioeconomic status (e.g. small business, service-disabled veteran-owned, women owned, HUBZone, etc.) This information will assist the Government in determining how small businesses can fit into the acquisition strategy. A firm is considered small under NAICS code 541380 if their AVERAGE annual receipts for the preceding three (3) years were less than or equal to $16.5 million. Any information submitted is voluntary. If enough interest and capability is not received from small business firms, any solicitation may be issued as unrestricted without further consideration. There will be no subcontracting of analytical work under this contract. Small business firms who feel they can provide the analysis shall also submit (1) NAME, ADDRESS, and PHONE NUMBER OF THE FIRM, DUNS NUMBER; and (2) their SIZE STATUS. Your company must have a DUNs number and be registered on-line at SAM.gov. (System for Award Management) All responses must be submitted NLT March 5, 2020 at 3:00pm MST via e-mail to: cjcarter@usgs.gov. This is NOT a Request for Proposal (RFP) or Invitation for Bid (IFB) and does not constitute any commitment by the Government. Responses to this source sought notice will be used by the Government to make appropriate acquisition decisions. All interested sources must respond to future solicitation announcements separately from responses to this market survey. Any solicitation that may be issued will be posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website and no paper copies will be provided.
- Web Link
-
SAM.gov Permalink
(https://beta.sam.gov/opp/e6e47e0fb50e4cf5aa22fc32c05ddb4a/view)
- Record
- SN05576151-F 20200301/200228230315 (samdaily.us)
- Source
-
SAM.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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