Material Measurement Laboratory

A picture of a keyboard with a key labelled "lexicon"

The NIST Bioeconomy Lexicon Aids Measurement of a Vital Industry Sector

NIST Supports Transition to a Circular Economy

Standard Reference Material for Cigarette Tobacco Filler (SRM 3222)

Welcome to the Material Measurement Laboratory

The NIST Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) conducts measurement science research to benefit industries based in the chemical, biological and material sciences, and contributes technical expertise to the development of standards. MML researchers perform fundamental and applied research, evaluate data, and create other programs and tools to assure the quality of measurement results. Our work supports areas of national importance: We contribute to the development of new vaccines and biologic drugs, characterize the performance of alternative fuels and refrigerants with less greenhouse gas potential, assess pollutants including ocean plastics, help develop new materials for lightweight, fuel efficient transportation, and much more.

News and Updates

Four small dark glass ampules stand on a lab table, market with skull and crossbones danger icons.

NIST Researchers Develop Standards to Help Eliminate ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Firefighting Foams

September 18, 2023

These foams contain chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have raised environmental and health concerns.

Pieces of salmon are being fed from a metal holder into the icy opening of a milling machine.

NIST’s Shrimp and Salmon Reference Materials Could Help Combat Seafood Fraud

September 8, 2023

Seafood fraud can happen when fish is incorrectly labeled for consumers as a more expensive variety.

Detangling Light-based Thermometers with Combs

August 29, 2023

Photonic thermometers , which measure temperature using light, have the potential to revolutionize temperature measurement by being faster, smaller, and more

Illustration shows a gloved hand holding a puzzle piece that fits into the center of a puzzle showing the letter Y.

Researchers Fully Sequence the Y Chromosome for the First Time

August 23, 2023

What was once the final frontier of the human genome — the Y chromosome — has just been mapped out in its entirety.

Events

Meet the NIST Material Measurements Laboratory

External Event

Wed, Sep 27 2023, 3:15 - 4:15pm EDT

Join the third in the series of six "Meet the NIST Labs" hosted by the Federal Laboratory Consortium (federallabs.org)

Supporting The Standardization of Seaweed Measurements

Tue, Oct 24 2023, 9:00am - 1:00pm EDT

In support of the NIST Dietary Supplement Laboratory Quality Assurance Program (DSQAP) Exercise 1 seaweed collaboration

Facilitating a Circular Economy for Food and Biomass

Tue, Dec 5 - Thu, Dec 7 2023

NIST’s Circular Economy Program is supporting the nation’s transition from a linear economic model to a cyclical one

Quantum Matters in Materials Science Workshop

Wed, Feb 21 - Thu, Feb 22 2024

As a part of the JARVIS workshops series, NIST is organizing the 3rd Quantum Matters in Materials Science (QMMS)

Projects and Programs

Biomanufacturing Initiative

Ongoing

Protein drugs are the top selling pharmaceuticals worldwide, a hundred billion dollar industry, but also the fastest growing category of health care costs. The

Plastic Pollution Measurement Science

Ongoing

While plastics have yielded immense benefits to society, discarded plastics or plastic pollution has become a pervasive highly visible problem especially in the

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)

Ongoing

NIST works to improve confidence in measurements and conducts research on PFAS for better human health and the environment.

photo collage of meats, cheese, eggs, fish, and shellfish

NIST Food Safety Program

Ongoing

A multi-disciplinary team is helping to ensure food safety and authenticity.

NIST Tools for Cannabis Laboratory Quality Assurance

Ongoing

NIST has developed an integrated measurement services program for forensic and cannabis testing laboratories to help ensure the quality of routine analysis

Automotive Lightweighting

Ongoing

Our objective is to support the efforts of the US automotive industry and its suppliers to incorporate advanced lightweight materials for improving fuel economy

Developing a Materials Innovation Infrastructure

Ongoing

Develop a materials innovation infrastructure for the design and discovery of inorganic materials to reduce the time and cost for deploying new materials into

View All Projects/Programs

Awards

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Michael Nelson, Blaza Toman, David Newton, Johanna Camara, Lane Sander, Amanda Koepke, Katrice Lippa

For development and deployment of a statistical tool for experiment design and rigorous assessment of measurement uncertainty for chemical analysis.

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Nicholas Derimow, Jake Benzing, Newell Moser, Orion Kafka, Nik Hrabe

For development of a method to control and enhance performance of 3D-printed titanium, leading to first-time industry use in critical applications.

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Kyle Anderson

For developing novel hydrogen-exchange mass-spectrometry methods that improve understanding of the structure and activity of protein-based drugs.

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Martin Stevens, Ralph Jimenez, Charles H. Camp Jr., Thomas Gerrits

For refuting published claims about quantum-enhanced microscopy by careful measurements of molecular absorption of photon pairs.

Press Coverage

Dr. Alshae' Logan-Jackson, a Microbiologist uses #WomensHistoryMonth to reflect on the women in history who played an important role in the quality of all our lives today.

Instagram: Department of Commerce

March 24, 2023

Alshae’ Logan’s thoughts on Women’s History contributions were shared with the DOC community for Women’s History Month.

The World Depends on a Strange Collection of Items. They're Not Cheap

Veritasium YouTube Channel

November 19, 2022

Steven Choquette, Benjamin Place, and Johanna Camara talk about the world of Standard Reference Materials.

Keeping up America’s standards is the job of NIST

The Economist

August 17, 2022

Melissa Phillips and NIST collaborators explain why NIST reference materials are so important to industry, monitoring environmental and human health, and much

Four images in a grid show increasingly larger plastic particles.

Getting a grip on microplastics’ risks

C&EN

May 27, 2022

NIST's Christopher Zangmeister discusses his team's work exploring plastic nanoparticles released by food-preserving film and coffee cups.

Material Measurement Laboratory

Welcome to the Material Measurement Laboratory

News and Updates

NIST Researchers Develop Standards to Help Eliminate ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Firefighting Foams

NIST’s Shrimp and Salmon Reference Materials Could Help Combat Seafood Fraud

Detangling Light-based Thermometers with Combs

Researchers Fully Sequence the Y Chromosome for the First Time

Events

Meet the NIST Material Measurements Laboratory

Supporting The Standardization of Seaweed Measurements

Facilitating a Circular Economy for Food and Biomass

Quantum Matters in Materials Science Workshop

Projects and Programs

Biomanufacturing Initiative

Plastic Pollution Measurement Science

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)

NIST Food Safety Program

NIST Tools for Cannabis Laboratory Quality Assurance

Automotive Lightweighting

Developing a Materials Innovation Infrastructure

Awards

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Michael Nelson, Blaza Toman, David Newton, Johanna Camara, Lane Sander, Amanda Koepke, Katrice Lippa

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Nicholas Derimow, Jake Benzing, Newell Moser, Orion Kafka, Nik Hrabe

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Kyle Anderson

2023 - Bronze Medal Award---Martin Stevens, Ralph Jimenez, Charles H. Camp Jr., Thomas Gerrits

Press Coverage

Dr. Alshae' Logan-Jackson, a Microbiologist uses #WomensHistoryMonth to reflect on the women in history who played an important role in the quality of all our lives today.

The World Depends on a Strange Collection of Items. They're Not Cheap

Keeping up America’s standards is the job of NIST

Getting a grip on microplastics’ risks

Contacts

GENERAL INFORMATION: 301-975-8300 (PHONE); MMLINFO@NIST.GOV; 100 BUREAU DRIVE, M/S 8300, GAITHERSBURG, MD 20899-8300

MML ACTING DIRECTOR