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Concept
Isotope geochemistry
Summary
Isotope geochemistry is an aspect of geology based upon the study of natural variations in the relative abundances of isotopes of various elements. Variations in isotopic abundance are measured by isotope ratio mass spectrometry, and can reveal information about the ages and origins of rock, air or water bodies, or processes of mixing between them.
Stable isotope geochemistry is largely concerned with isotopic variations arising from mass-dependent isotope fractionation, whereas radiogenic isotope geochemistry is concerned with the products of natural radioactivity.
For most stable isotopes, the magnitude of fractionation from kinetic and equilibrium fractionation is very small; for this reason, enrichments are typically reported in "per mil" (‰, parts per thousand). These enrichments (δ) represent the ratio of heavy isotope to light isotope in the sample over the ratio of a standard. That is,
‰
Hydrogen isotope biogeochemistry
δ13C
Carbon has two stable isotopes, 12C and 13C, and one radioactive isotope, 14C.
The stable carbon isotope ratio, δ13C, is measured against Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite (VPDB). The stable carbon isotopes are fractionated primarily by photosynthesis (Faure, 2004). The 13C/12C ratio is also an indicator of paleoclimate: a change in the ratio in the remains of plants indicates a change in the amount of photosynthetic activity, and thus in how favorable the environment was for the plants. During photosynthesis, organisms using the C3 pathway show different enrichments compared to those using the C4 pathway, allowing scientists not only to distinguish organic matter from abiotic carbon, but also what type of photosynthetic pathway the organic matter was using. Occasional spikes in the global 13C/12C ratio have also been useful as stratigraphic markers for chemostratigraphy, especially during the Paleozoic.
The 14C ratio has been used to track ocean circulation, among other things.
Nitrogen has two stable isotopes, 14N and 15N. The ratio between these is measured relative to nitrogen in ambient air.
Official source
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