Investigating effects of aqueous speciation in 13C-18O clumping and its implications for paleothermometry

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The recently established "clumped isotope" paleothermometer is based on the Carbon 13 - Oxygen 18 bond abundance in carbonate minerals. Although this technique is becoming more widely used, there are still many questions about the underlying processes that control geochemical signatures in bio-minerals and non-biologically formed minerals. This project will address several of these outstanding questions. Investigators will compare results from theoretical calculations and experiments to observations, including from slowly-grown naturally occurring samples such as the Devils Hole speleothem and deep-sea corals of variable mineralogy. This work should improve the ability to employ clumped isotopes in surface and subsurface systems, and identify the limitations of this technique. This work will be highlighted in UCLA's annual Physical Sciences Outreach Day that brings 2000-3000 members of the public to the campus and a few hundred people to the exhibits. All of the participants in this project will also conduct a mineral precipitation activity with school children as part of a regular outreach program the PI runs. Support of this project will benefit an early career PI who is establishing a NSF-supported state-of-the-art isotope lab and is committed to recruiting, mentoring, and supporting outstanding early career scientists from diverse backgrounds, thus furthering NSF's goals to support underrepresented groups in the Earth Sciences.