Isotope ratios natural

Ambrose, S. H. and DeNiro, M. J. (1986). Reconstruction of African human diet using bone collagen carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios. Nature 319 321-324. 

Rutberg R. L., Hemming S. R., and Goldstein S. L. (2000) Reduced North Atlantic deep water flux to the glacial Southern Ocean inferred from neodymium isotope ratios. Nature 405, 935-938. 

Element Isotope ratio Natural abundance (%) Material analyzed Applications... 

For other elements that occur with major relative abundances of more than one isotope in the natural state, the isotope pattern becomes much more complex. For example, with chlorine and bromine, the presence of these elements is clearly apparent from the isotopes Cl and for chlorine and Br and Br for bromine. Figure 47.2a shows the molecular ion region for the compound chlorodecane. Now, there are new situations in that C, C, C1, and Cl isotopes all have probabilities of occurring together. Thus, there are molecular ion peaks for + Cl, C + Cl, + Cl, and so on. Even so, the isotopic ratio of 3 1 for Cl to Cl is very clear... 

One of the most significant sources of change in isotope ratios is caused by the small mass differences between isotopes and their effects on the physical properties of elements and compounds. For example, ordinary water (mostly Ej O) has a lower density, lower boiling point, and higher vapor pressure than does heavy water (mostly H2 0). Other major changes can occur through exchange processes. Such physical and kinetic differences lead to natural local fractionation of isotopes. Artificial fractionation (enrichment or depletion) of uranium isotopes is the basis for construction of atomic bombs, nuclear power reactors, and depleted uranium weapons. 

Few of the naturally occurring elements have significant amounts of radioactive isotopes, but there are many artificially produced radioactive species. Mass spectrometry can measure both radioactive and nonradioactive isotope ratios, but there are health and safety issues for the radioactive ones. However, modem isotope instmments are becoming so sensitive that only very small amounts of sample are needed. Where radioactive isotopes are a serious issue, the radioactive hazards can be minimized by using special inlet systems and ion pumps in place of rotary pumps for maintaining a vacuum. For example, mass spectrometry is now used in the analysis of Pu/ Pu ratios. 

For example, if a carbonaceous sample (S) is examined mass spectrometrically, the ratio of abundances for the carbon isotopes C, in the sample is Rg. This ratio by itself is of little significance and needs to be related to a reference standard of some sort. The same isotope ratio measured for a reference sample is then R. The reference ratio also serves to check the performance of the mass spectrometer. If two ratios are measured, it is natural to assess them against each other as, for example, the sample versus the reference material. This assessment is defined by another ratio, a (the fractionation factor Figure 48.2). 

These effects of differential vapor pressures on isotope ratios are important for gases and liquids at near-ambient temperatures. As temperature rises, the differences for volatile materials become less and less. However, diffusion processes are also important, and these increase in importance as temperature rises, particularly in rocks and similar natural materials. Minerals can exchange oxygen with the atmosphere, or rocks can affect each other by diffusion of ions from one type into another and vice versa. Such changes can be used to interpret the temperatures to which rocks have been subjected during or after their formation. 

Atoms of elements are composed of isotopes. The ratio of natural abundance of the isotopes is characteristic of an element and is important in analysis. A mass spectrometer is normally the best general instrument for measuring isotope ratios. 

The Oklo Phenomenon. Naturally occurring uranium consists mainly of and fissionable The isotopic ratio can be calculated from the relative decay rates of the two isotopes. Because decays faster than the isotopic ratio decreases with time. In 1997, the isotopic abundance of 235u... 

In recent years, together with enantioselective analysis, the determination of the natural abundance of stable isotopes by means of stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry (TRMS) can be very useful for the assignment of the origin of foods and food ingredients, and of authenticity evaluation (24). 

S. Nitz, H. Kollmannsberger, B. Weinreich and F. Drawert, Enantiomeric distr ibution and C/ C isotope ratio deter mination of -y-lactones appropriate methods for the differentiation between natural and non-natural flavours , 7. Chromatogr. 557 187-197 (1991). 

Authenticity evaluation has recently received increased attention in a number of industries. The complex mixtures involved often require very high resolution analyses and, in the case of determining the authenticity of natural products, very accurate determination of enantiomeric purity. Juchelka et al. have described a method for the authenticity determination of natural products which uses a combination of enantioselective multidimensional gas chromatography with isotope ratio mass spectrometry (28). In isotope ratio mass spectrometry, combustion analysis is combined with mass spectrometry, and the ratio of the analyte is measured versus a... 

Figure 15.12 GC-GC chromatogram of a natural cw-3-hexen-l-ol fraction. Peak identification is as follows 1, ethyl-2-methylbutyrate 2, traw-2-hexenal 3, 1-hexanol 4, cw-3-hexen-l-ol 5, tro 5-2-hexen-l-ol. Adapted from Journal of High Resolution Chromatography, 15, S. Nitz et al.. Multidimensional gas chromatography-isotope ratio mass specti ometry, (MDGC-IRMS). Part A system desaiption and technical requuements , pp. 387-391, 1992, with permission from Wiley-VCH.

DeNiro, M.J. 1985 Postmortem preservation and alteration of in vivo bone collagen isotope ratios in relation to palaeodietary reconstruction. Nature 317 806-809. 

Stuiver, M. and Braziunas, T.F. 1987 Tree cellulose C/ C isotope ratios and climatic change. Nature 328 58-60. 

Schoeninger, M.J. and DeNiro, M.J. 1982 Carbon isotope ratios of apatite from bone cannot be used to reconstruct diets of animals. Nature 297 577-578. 

Carhon isotope ratios of hone apatite and animal diet reconstruction. Nature 301 ... 

Guy, R.D., Reid, D.M. Krouse, H.R. (1980). Shifts in carbon isotope ratios of two Cj halotypes under natural and artificial conditions. Oecologia, 44, 241-7. 

Tracers have been used to label fluids in order to track fluid movement and monitor chemical changes of the injected fluid. Radioactive materials are one class of commonly used tracers. These tracers have several drawbacks. One drawback is that they require special handling because of the danger posed to personnel and the environment. Another drawback is the alteration by the radioactive materials of the natural isotope ratio indigenous to the reservoir— thereby interfering with scientific analysis of the reservoir fluid characteristics. In addition, the half life of radioactive tracers tends to be either too long or too short for practical use. 

For precise measurement of isotopic composition by mass spectrometry, it is also common to use either a natural, known isotopic ratio to correct for instrumental mass fractionation (e g., internal normalization) or to add a tracer for this purpose. For example for natural uranium samples, one can use the natural U/ U of 137.88 to correct for fractionation. Alternatively, one can use an added double spike of ratio -unity... 

However, thorium has only two naturally occurring long-lived isotopes, and all Th measurements by TIMS are limited by the absence of a well-constrained isotope ratio that can be used for internal normalization purposes to correct for instrumental mass fractionation. In this regard, one of the most important advantages of MC-ICPMS over MC-TIMS is the ability to admix two elements with overlapping mass ranges and use the... 

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