Acquisition of an Isotope Ratio Gas Source Mass Spectrometer

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0548526BindemanThis grant supports acquisition of a multi-collector, dual inlet, stable isotope ratio gas source mass spectrometer (SIRMS) equipped with a high temperature pyrolysis sample introduction system in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Oregon. The SIRMS will complement an existing CO2 laser heated fluorination line (LHF). The LHF SIRMS will support a wide range of stable isotopic research that requires or will benefit from high precision analyses of very small gas volumes. Examples include studies of non-mass dependent isotopic fractionation of oxygen as be recorded in the 17O isotopic composition of volcanic aerosol precipitates (a promising proxy of volcanic eruption column interactions with the Earths protective ozone layer), more traditional petrologic/volcanologic studies of d18O zoning in phenocrysts to help constrain magmatic residence times, analysis of hydrogen isotopic signals of magmatic degassing as recorded in volcanic glasses, and stable isotopic investigations of paleosols, fossil dental enamel and bone apatite as proxies of paleotemperatures and organism paleodiets. The LHF-SIRMS will be the first stable isotope mass spectrometer of its kind available to faculty in the Department of Geological Sciences and more broadly across campus at the University of Oregon. The facility will serve as a regional center for stable isotopic analysis in the Pacific Northwest, complementing facilities at Oregon State and the University of Washington. This facility will also support undergraduate and graduate level research training in state-of-the-art stable isotopic research and methods. The University of Oregon Department of Geosciences has an admirable record of recruiting and training a large fraction of female students. The new SIRMS facility will further Departmental goals to expose underrepresented groups to geosciences research and research methods.***