The Light Stable Isotope Mass Spec Lab in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Florida provides isotopic and elemental analysis on a large number of materials. We analyze samples for scientists and students from a variety of departments at the University of Florida in addition to many US and international universities and institutions.
Isotopic services
δ18O and δ13C of calcite and aragonite (forams, ostracods, gastropods, bulk sediment)
δ18O and δ13C of enamel and apatite
δ18O and δD of water
δ15N and δ13C of organic matter (sediment, animal, plant)
δ13C of atmospheric gases
δ13C of water DIC
δ13C of specific compounds (alkanes, FAME’s, etc.)
Elemental and additional services
Percent C,N,H,S in solids (sediments, organics)
Percent calcium carbonate (sediments)
Total DIC (water)
Headspace CO2 analysis
Solvent extraction
Sediment processing (marine and lacustrine) and microfossil picking (forams ostracods, and gastropods)
Prices and turnaround times vary. Please contact Jason Curtis (Stable Isotope Website) for more information.
Instrumentation
The Light Stable Isotope Mass Spec Lab in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Florida consists of six isotopic ratio mass spectrometers and two cavity ring down isotopic analyzers.
— Finnigan-MAT 252 isotope ratio mass spec with a Kiel III carbonate preparation device
— Thermo Delta V Advantage isotope ratio mass spec with a ConFlo II interface attached to a Carlo Erba elemental analyzer
— Thermo Delta V Advantage isotope ratio mass spec with a ConFlo IV interface attached to a Thermo IsoLink elemental analyzer
— Thermo Delta V Plus isotope ratio mass spec with a ConFlo IV interface attached to a Thermo TC/EA and a Thermo GCC-III interface with modified HP6890 GC
— Finnigan-MAT DeltaPlus isotope ratio mass spec with a ConFlo II interface attached to a Carlo Erba elemental analyzer
— Shared Finnigan-MAT DeltaPlus XL isotope ratio mass spec with a ConFlo III linked to a Costech elemental analyzer and a Thermo GasBench prep device
— Picarro L2120-I Isotopic Liquid Water and Water Vapor Analyzer coupled with a Picarro A0211 High Precision Vaporizer and a CTC HTS PAL autosampler
— Picarro G2201-i CRDS Analyzer for Isotopic CO2 and CH4
Additional equipment includes additional elemental analyzers, several UIC carbon coulometers with an AutoMate automatic acidification preparation system, a Dionex ASE300 extraction device, various vacuum extraction lines, micro- and macro-balances, and assorted equipment for preparing samples for isotopic and elemental analysis. The Finnigan-MAT DeltaPlus mass spectrometer is shared with the Department of Soil and Water Sciences.