MRI: ACQUISITION OF A CAVITY RING DOWN SPECTROSCOPY ANALYZER FOR RESEARCH IN WETLAND CARBON CYCLING BY FACULTY AND UNDERGRADUATES AT CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY

查普曼大学获得了一个奖项，以获得一个腔衰荡光谱（CRDS）分析仪，用于湿地碳循环的研究。 CRDS分析仪的收购将增加研究培训的机会，利用现有的一些辅导和教学计划在查普曼大学，本科服务机构在橙子，加州。 这些措施包括指导本科生研究;整合到现有的生态系统生态学实验室课程;在一个既定的研究培训计划，为当地高中学生使用;和培训社区大学生的支持下，正在进行的NSF REU网站计划。 这些培训工作将继续保持成功的记录，使女性和代表人数不足的少数群体能够利用世界一流的仪器从事尖端科学研究。湿地是全球碳循环中最重要的生态系统之一，因为其土壤碳库和甲烷排放量高。 鉴于湿地在全球碳循环中的重要性，湿地过去一直是气候变化的重要驱动因素。 全球变化地球化学中的一个紧迫问题仍然是，在未来的气候中，湿地土壤中的大量碳库中是否有相当大的一部分会以甲烷的形式释放出来。一个更完整的机制，介导湿地碳循环的复杂的微生物过程的理解是必要的，以准确地模拟湿地分解和甲烷动力学正在进行的全球变化的响应。 稳定同位素是探索湿地碳循环的有力工具，可以为湿地甲烷的生产和消费提供重要的见解。 获得一个光腔衰荡光谱分析仪将能够测量二氧化碳和甲烷的稳定同位素组成。 所获得的仪器将为湿地生态系统的分解、甲烷产生和甲烷消耗过程提供重要的见解，以更好地了解它们在全球碳循环中的作用。

An award is made to Chapman University to acquire a cavity ring down spectroscopy (CRDS) analyzer for research in wetland carbon cycling. The acquisition of a CRDS analyzer will increase opportunities for research training by leveraging a number of existing mentoring and teaching programs at Chapman University, an undergraduate-serving institution in Orange, California. These include mentored undergraduate research; integration into an existing Ecosystem Ecology laboratory course; use in an established research training program for local high school students; and training of community college students supported by an ongoing NSF REU-Site program. These training efforts will continue a successful track record of engaging females and underrepresented minorities in cutting edge scientific research using world-class instrumentation. Wetlands are among the most important ecosystems in the global carbon cycle because of their large soil carbon pools and high methane emissions. Given their importance in the global carbon cycle, wetlands have been important drivers of climate change in the past. A pressing question in global change biogeochemistry remains whether a significant fraction of the large carbon pool in wetland soils will be released as methane in future climates. A more complete mechanistic understanding of the complex microbial processes that mediate wetland carbon cycling is necessary to accurately model the response of wetland decomposition and methane dynamics to ongoing global change. Stable isotopes are a powerful tool for exploring wetland carbon cycling and can provide important insights into the production and consumption of methane in wetlands. The acquisition of a cavity ring down spectroscopy (CRDS) analyzer will allow for the measurement of stable isotopic composition of carbon dioxide and methane. The acquired instrument will provide important insights into the processes of decomposition, methane production and methane consumption in wetland ecosystems to better understand their role in the global carbon cycle.