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台腔振荡谱(CRDS)分析仪，用于湿地碳循环研究。收购CRDS分析仪将利用查普曼大学现有的一些指导和教学计划，增加研究培训的机会。查普曼大学是加利福尼亚州奥兰治的一家本科生服务机构。这些措施包括有指导的本科生研究；融入现有的生态系统生态学实验室课程；用于为当地高中生制定的研究培训计划；以及由正在进行的NSF REU现场计划支持的社区大学生培训。这些培训工作将继续利用世界级仪器吸引女性和代表性不足的少数群体参与尖端科学研究的成功记录。湿地是全球碳循环中最重要的生态系统之一，因为它们拥有巨大的土壤碳库和高甲烷排放量。鉴于湿地在全球碳循环中的重要性，湿地在过去一直是气候变化的重要驱动因素。全球变化生物地球化学中的一个紧迫问题仍然是，湿地土壤中的大量碳库中的很大一部分是否会在未来的气候中以甲烷的形式释放出来。为了准确地模拟湿地分解和甲烷动态对持续全球变化的响应，有必要从更完整的机制上理解调节湿地碳循环的复杂微生物过程。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。购置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、甲烷生产和甲烷消费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.