Development of Instrumentation for Measuring the Atmosphere Ar/N2 Ratio and Acquisition of Instrumentation for Automated Analysis of the Isotopes of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

PI将购买并改装一台商用同位素比质谱仪，以测量空气样本中Ar/N2比值的变化。 PI预计这一比例会因温度引起的溶解度变化驱动的Ar和N2的海气交换而变化。 一旦被发现，这种变化可能有助于确定大气和海洋之间与气候相关的热交换。 该技术涉及一种动态在线同位素稀释方法，其中稀有的稳定同位素氩在同位素比质谱仪的入口处与样品混合。 在线稀释方法的关键方面已经过测试，并使用罗得岛大学暂时可用的质谱仪进行了证明。 PI将在Scripps获得一台专用仪器，以开发一个集成测量系统，该系统由连接到质谱仪的切换级和气体稀释级组成。 他将用这个系统测试气体处理和校准程序。 最后，PI将配备质谱仪以分析二氧化碳的同位素，并获得从样品中自动提取二氧化碳进行同位素分析的设备。 这一设施将允许分析来自同一烧瓶方案的空气样本中的二氧化碳同位素，从而进一步确定世界海洋中热量和气体交换过程的特征。 这项研究很重要，因为它将提供与全球气候过程有关的海洋和大气电荷的估计。

The PI will purchase and adapt a commercially available isotope ratio mass spectrometer to measure variations in the Ar/N2 radio of air samples. The PIs expect this ratio to vary due to air-sea exchange of Ar and N2 driven by temperature-induced solubility changes. Once detected, such variations could help to determine climatically relevant heat exchanges between the atmosphere and oceans. The technique involves a dynamic on-line isotope dilution method in which a rare stable isotope of argon is blended with a sample at the inlet of an isotope ratio mass spectrometer. Critical aspects of the on-line dilution method have been tested and proven using a mass spectrometer temporarily available at the University of Rhode Island. The PI will obtain a dedicated instrument at Scripps to develop an integrated measurement system consisting of a switching stage and gas dilution stage connected to the mass spectrometer. He will test gas handling and calibration procedures with this system. Finally, the PI will equip the mass spectrometer to analyze isotopes of carbon dioxide and acquire equipment for its automatic extraction from the samples for isotopic analysis. This facility will allow analysis of carbon dioxide isotopes from air samples from the same flask program, thus allowing further characterization of the processes of heat and gas exchange in the world oceans. The research is important because it will provide estimates of ocean and atmospheric charges relevant to global climate processes.