MRI: Acquisition of Instrumentation for Organic Molecular Research

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Funds from this Major Research Instrumentation grant will support acquisition of multiple instruments to support biogeochemical and paleoenvironmental research that relies on analyses of the stable isotopic signatures of C, O and N in complex organic molecules as proxies of microbial activity and past environments. Instruments to be acquired include: 1) a gas chromatograph with both a quadrupole mass analyzer and flame ionization detection (GC/MS-FID); 2) a GC with high temperature pyrolysis attachment; 3) a GC coupled with a preparative fraction collector; and 4) a high performance liquid chromatograph- time of flight mass spectrometer (TOF-LC/MS). The instruments will be housed in a centralized facility with a dedicated technician. The equipment will allow for detailed structural analysis and non-destructive collection of a broad range of natural and experimental organic compounds for subsequent compound-specific radiocarbon dating, metal-ligand complex analysis, and stable isotopic analysis for development of novel proxy temperature records in the geologic record. Five PIs and their graduate students with research interests spanning atmospheric chemistry, the global carbon cycle through time, development of environmental proxies from modern isotopic compositions of algal and terrestrial organic compounds, trace metal complexation, diagenetic pathways of organic matter, biogeochemistry, and molecular geomicrobiology will benefit from these advanced capabilities.