MRI-R2: Acquisition of IRMS Instruments for Stable Isotope Analyses of New Geobiological Substrates

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).This award provides funds to purchase a Delta V Advantage and a MAT 253 gas-ratio IRMS, and a Picarro L1102-i Wavelength- Scanned Cavity Ring Down Spectrometer. The research topics to be addressed with the Delta-V MS include: the relationship between d_13C in atmospheric CO2 and d_13C in plant tissue grown across the pCO2 levels of the Phanerozoic; Microsampling of d_13C fossil wood, in order to reconstruct patterns of carbon allocation, which relate to paleo-envronmental conditions; Reduction of sample size for d_13C and d_13N analysis of forensic materials, with an emphasis on explosive identification, in order to accommodate the analysis of material ¡§smears¡¨ and explosion residues; Coupled denitrification - N2 fixation and response of N2 fixing microorganisms to changing seawater carbon chemistry; and Quantifying rates of anammox (anaerobic ammonium oxidation) in flooded agricultural fields and marine sponge tissues. The research topics to be addressed with the MAT 253 IRMS include: Alkenone production rate from natural abundance and labeled d_13C measurements; High-resolution rates of ammonia oxidation in the eastern Pacific Ocean; del-D values in n-alkanes of chain length 23, 25, 27 and 29 within Arctic Sediments; Coupled denitrification - N2 fixation using in situ 13C labeling experiments to help identify the specific organisms responsible for the N2 fixation; compound-specific nitrogen and carbon isotope analyses of amino acids to quantify marine animal trophic levels; and carbon isotopes within soluble blood fractions for biomarkers that provide a quantitative index of sweetener, meat or fat consumption, which is important for the study of obesity and diabetes, a growing problem in the Native Hawaiian community. The research topics to be addressed with the Picarro L1102-I WS-CRDS include: Pacific high island evolutionary biogeography, impacts of invasive species, anthropogenic activity and climate change on Hawaiian focal species; quantifying fluxes and dissolved loads of submarine groundwater to Oahu¡¦s coastal zone systems; and assessment of groundwater inputs into coastal waters of West Hawaii via natural tracers and aerial imagery.Broader Impacts:These instruments will support users at every level (e.g., professors, postdocs, graduate and undergraduate students) interested in stable isotope techniques, through new collaborations, teaching efforts, and a free ?seed analysis? program. These activities will culminate in an annual symposium, in which all users (particularly students) will present the results and implications of their analyses in a 10-15 minute talk-forum. Because the US Department of Education has designated the University of Hawaii as a Native Hawaiian-Serving Institution under Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965, there are opportunities for minority participants in the program, and this equipment provide the capability to conduct projects relevant to Hawaiian ecosystems and their conservation.