Methods to reduce interference effects in thermal conversion elemental analyzer/continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry delta18O measurements of nitrogen-containing compounds

On-line determination of the oxygen isotopic composition (delta(18)O value) in organic and inorganic samples is commonly performed using a thermal conversion elemental analyzer (TC-EA) linked to a continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) system. Accurate delta(18)O analysis of N-containing compounds (like nitrates) by TC-EA-IRMS may be complicated because of interference of the N(2) peak on the m/z 30 signal of the CO peak. In this study we evaluated the effectiveness of two methods to overcome this interference which do not require any hardware modifications of standard TC-EA-IRMS systems. These methods were (1) reducing the amount of N(2) introduced into the ion source through He dilution of the N(2) peak and (2) an improved background correction on the CO m/z 30 sample peak integration.Our results show that He dilution is as effective as diverting the N(2) peak in order to eliminate this interference. We conclude that the He-dilution technique is a viable method for the delta(18)O analysis of nitrates and other N-containing samples (which are not routinely measured using He dilution) using TC-EA-IRMS, since it can easily be programmed in the standard software of IRMS systems. With the He-dilution technique delta(18)O values of the nitrate isotope standards USGS34, IAEA-N3 and USGS35 were measured using the shortest possible traceability chain to the VSMOW-SLAP scale, and the results were -28.1 +/- 0.1 per thousand, +25.5 +/- 0.1 per thousand and +57.5 +/- 0.2 per thousand, respectively. An improved background correction was also an effective method, but required manual correction of the raw data.     

Oxygen-18 measurement of Andalusian olive oils by continuous flow pyrolysis/isotope ratio mass spectrometry

We report a method for the determination of delta(18)O isotopic abundance in olive oils. The results obtained by applying the method to various Andalusian oil samples obtained in the 2004/05 and 2005/06 seasons are discussed in relation to olive variety, geographical origin, climate and ripeness index. Application of the method to samples of assured varietal purity exposed the influence of olive variety and origin but not of the ripeness index. The delta(18)O values for the 2005/06 season are higher on average than those obtained in the colder 2004/05 season. Results obtained for samples of the Picual and Hojiblanca varieties in Córdoba and Málaga in the 2005/06 season suggest a correlation between enrichment in heavy isotopes and latitude whereas no clear-cut effect of altitude was observed.     

delta34S measurements on organic materials by continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry

Sulfur (S) isotope ratios of thoroughly dried organic samples were measured by direct thermal decomposition in an elemental analyzer coupled to an isotope ratio mass spectrometer in continuous flow mode (EA-CF-IRMS). For organic samples of up to 13 mg weight and with total S contents of more than 10 microg, the reproducibility of the delta34S(organic) values was +/-0.4 per thousand or better. However, the delta34S values of organic samples measured directly by online EA-CF-IRMS analysis were between 0.3 and 2.9 per thousand higher than those determined on BaSO4 precipitates produced by Parr Bomb oxidation from the same sample material. Our results suggest that structural oxygen in organic samples influences the oxygen isotope ratios of the SO2 produced from organic samples. Consequently, SO2 generated from organic samples appears to have different 18O/16O ratios than SO2 generated from BaSO4 precipitates and inorganic reference materials, resulting in a deviation from the true delta34S values because of 32S16O18O contributions to mass 66. It was shown that both the amount of structural oxygen in the organic sample, and the difference of the oxygen isotope ratios between organic samples and tank O2, influenced the magnitude of the observed deviation from the true delta34S value after direct EA-CF-IRMS analysis of organic samples. Suggestions are made to correct the difference between measured delta34S(organic) and true delta34S values in order to obtain not only reproducible, but also accurate S isotope ratios for organic materials by EA-CF-IRMS.     

Determination of inorganic chlorine stable isotopes by continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry

Chlorine stable isotope analyses of inorganic samples were conducted using continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry (CF-IRMS) coupled with gas chromatography (GC). Inorganic chloride was precipitated in the form of silver chloride (AgCl) by using silver nitrate in a standard methodology. Chlorine stable isotope analysis was carried out on methyl chloride (CH3Cl) after converting AgCl into CH3Cl by reacting it with methyl iodide (CH3I). The reaction between AgCl and CH3I took place in 20 mL size vials. Addition of CH3I was performed in a glove bag under helium flow. An Agilent 6890 gas chromatograph equipped with a CTC Analytics CombiPAL autosampler and a DB-5MS 60 m column was used to separate CH3Cl from CH3I. This new technique uses samples as small as 0.2 mg of AgCl (1.4 micromol of Cl-). The chlorine stable isotope analysis using continuous flow technology showed excellent precision and accuracy. The internal precision using pure CH3Cl gas is better than +/-0.04 per thousand (+/-STDV). The external precision using seawater standard is better than +/-0.07 per thousand (+/-STDV) for n=12. Moreover, the sample analysis time is much shorter and many more samples can be analyzed in one day than by using the conventional off-line techniques.     

Delta13C and delta18O isotopic composition of CaCO3 measured by continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry: statistical evaluation and verification by application to Devils Hole core DH-11 calcite

A new method was developed to analyze the stable carbon and oxygen isotope ratios of small samples (400 +/- 20 micro g) of calcium carbonate. This new method streamlines the classical phosphoric acid/calcium carbonate (H(3)PO(4)/CaCO(3)) reaction method by making use of a recently available Thermoquest-Finnigan GasBench II preparation device and a Delta Plus XL continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometer. Conditions for which the H(3)PO(4)/CaCO(3) reaction produced reproducible and accurate results with minimal error had to be determined. When the acid/carbonate reaction temperature was kept at 26 degrees C and the reaction time was between 24 and 54 h, the precision of the carbon and oxygen isotope ratios for pooled samples from three reference standard materials was 相似文献   

Comparison of secondary ion mass spectrometry and micromilling/continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry techniques used to acquire intra‐otolith δ18O values of wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

The chemical signals in the sequential layers of fish otoliths have the potential to provide fisheries biologists with temporal and spatial details of migration which are difficult to obtain without expensive tracking methods. Signal resolution depends, however, on the extraction technique used. We compared the use of mechanical micromilling and continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry (CF‐IRMS) methods with secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) to obtain δ¹⁸O profiles from otoliths of wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and used these to corroborate the time of freshwater emigration of the juvenile with macroscopic patterns within the otolith. Both techniques showed the transition occurring at the same visible feature on the otolith, allowing future analyses to easily identify the juvenile (freshwater) versus adult (marine) life‐stages. However, SIMS showed a rapid and abrupt transition whereas micromilling provided a less distinct signal. The number of samples that could be obtained per unit area sampled using SIMS was 2 to 3 times greater than that when using micromilling/CF‐IRMS although the δ¹⁸O values and analytical precisions (～0.2‰) of the two methods were comparable. In addition, SIMS δ¹⁸O results were used to compare otolith aragonite values with predicted values calculated using various isotope fractionation equations. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigation of the feeding effect on the 13C/12C isotope ratio of the hormones in bovine urine using gas chromatography/combustion isotope ratio mass spectrometry

The effect of the feeding on the 13C/12C isotope ratio of four endogenous steroid hormones testosterone (T), epi-testosterone (epi-T), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and etiocholanolone (ETIO) in bovine urine was investigated. An analytical method to determine the accurate isotope ratio was developed including an extensive clean up followed by enrichment of the analytes in two steps of HPLC fractionation. Feeding experiments with four young animals were performed using C3 and C4 plants (grass, maize silage, hay, etc.) over a time period of about 280 days. One cattle was used as a control animal with no change of its diet over the full period. The detection of the 13C/12C isotope ratio of the acetylated extracts was performed by gas chromatography/combustion isotope ratio mass spectrometry. After the first change of the feeding from C4 to C3 plants significant changes of the delta 13C % values were observed from the -19 to -23% level to the -24 to -32% level for etiocholanolone and epi-testosterone in urine of three animals, whereas the DHEA values remained under the level of the two metabolites. Testosterone could not be detected with GC-C-IRMS due to its low concentration in young animals. After the second change of the diet from C3 to C4 plants (after 222 days), the measured delta 13C % values have been stabilised at the original level. The results show that in case of the feeding with only C3 plants the endogenous delta values of -32% can be reached. In this case the contribution of exogenous material with a delta value of -32% could not be detected independently of the concentration. If the diet contains C4 plants the difference or the ratio of the delta 13C % values becomes the determinant in the discriminatory power. For validation of the method a human and a cattle were treated with testosterone and the delta 13C % values were measured in incurred human and cattle urine.     

Determination of nitrogen‐15 isotope fractionation in tropine: evaluation of extraction protocols for isotope ratio measurement by isotope ratio mass spectrometry

N‐Demethylation of tropine is an important step in the degradation of this compound and related metabolites. With the purpose of understanding the reaction mechanism(s) involved, it is desirable to measure the ¹⁵N kinetic isotope effects (KIEs), which can be accessed through the ¹⁵N isotope shift (Δδ¹⁵N) during the reaction. To measure the isotope fractionation in ¹⁵N during tropine degradation necessitates the extraction of the residual substrate from dilute aqueous solution without introducing artefactual isotope fractionation. Three protocols have been compared for the extraction and measurement of the ¹⁵N/¹⁴N ratio of tropine from aqueous medium, involving liquid‐liquid phase partitioning or silica‐C18 solid‐phase extraction. Quantification was by gas chromatography (GC) on the recovered organic phase and δ¹⁵N values were obtained by isotope ratio measurement mass spectrometry (irm‐MS). Although all the protocols used can provide satisfactory data and both irm‐EA‐MS and irm‐GC‐MS can be used to obtain the δ¹⁵N values, the most convenient method is liquid‐liquid extraction from a reduced aqueous volume combined with irm‐GC‐MS. The protocols are applied to the measurement of ¹⁵N isotope shifts during growth of a Pseudomonas strain that uses tropane alkaloids as sole source of carbon and nitrogen. The accuracy of the determination of the ¹⁵N/¹⁴N ratio is sufficient to be used for the determination of ¹⁵N‐KIEs. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determination of rhizosphere 13C pulse signals in soil thin sections by laser ablation isotope ratio mass spectrometry

In grassland ecosystems, soil animals act as key soil engineers and architects. The diversity of soil animals is also a regulator of ecosystem carbon flow. However, our understanding of the link between soil animals, carbon fluxes and soil physical organisation remains poor. An integrated approach based on soil micromorphology and laser ablation stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry (LA-IRMS) was developed to provide spatially distributed data of pulse-derived (13)C tracer from roots in the soil environment. This paper describes the development and testing of a LA-IRMS (13)C/(12)C analytical method on soil thin sections as a means to determine the fate of root carbon derived from photosynthesis into soil. Results from this work demonstrated (1) that micro-scale delta(13)C (per thousand) analysis could be made on targeted features located within a soil thin section and (2) that LA-IRMS delta(13)C (per thousand) measurements made on samples obtained from (13)CO(2) pulse labelled plant-soil blocks confirmed the presence of recent photosynthates in the rhizosphere (1 and 4 weeks post-pulse).     

Origin differentiation of heroin sample and its acetylating agent with (13)C isotope ratio mass spectrometry

A novel method for deducing the origins of heroin and the reagent used for acetylation was established based on delta(13)C determinations of heroin and its hydrolysate, morphine, using gas chromatography (13)C isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS). The alkaline and acid hydrolysis conditions of heroin were optimized. Both yield and purity of morphine produced could meet the requirement for a GC-C-IRMS analysis. Using (2-diethylaminoethyl-2,2- diphenylvalerate) as internal standard the determinations of heroin and morphine contents were performed with a GC method in a linear range of 0.2 to 2.0 mg ml(1) that was required to gain the isotope ratio results. The hydrolysis and synthesis of heroin did not change the delta(13)C value of morphine. The precision for delta(13)C detection of both heroin and morphine was sufficient for origin differentiation of heroin samples. The information about the origins of acetylation reagents could be deduced from the difference of delta(13)C values between heroin and morphine. The results for origin differentiation of 10 heroin samples grouped into different regions and their acetylating agents were satisfactory.     

A new continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry system for the analysis of delta2H, delta17O and delta18O of small (120 microg) water samples in atmospheric applications

A new continuous-flow system for the analysis of the complete stable isotopic composition of water vapor has been developed. The sample size is reduced to only 120 microg (identical with 120 nL of liquid substance) of water, yielding precisions of about 0.7, 1.3 and 7 per thousand for delta17O, delta18O and delta2H, respectively. The total time for the analysis of a sample is about 150 min including purging times. Oxidized steel surfaces can be a source of memory effects which can be corrected for. The system is predestined for atmospheric applications in the tropopause region, as the sample can be directly introduced into the system from a cryogenic trap.     

Matrix effects in plutonium isotope ratio measurements using thermal ionization mass spectrometry

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - Through high fidelity measurements of four different plutonium certified reference material standards from New Brunswick Laboratory, the mass...     

Coupled Si and O isotope measurements of meteoritic material by laser fluorination isotope ratio mass spectrometry

We present a procedure for the determination of the isotopic ratios of silicon and oxygen from the same aliquot of anhydrous silicate material. The sample is placed in a bromine pentafluoride atmosphere as it is heated with a CO₂ laser system releasing silicon tetrafluoride and oxygen gasses. The oxygen gas is then purified to remove other reaction by‐products through several liquid nitrogen traps before being captured onto a molecular sieve and transferred to an isotope ratio mass spectrometer. The silicon tetrafluoride gas is then purified using a supplementary line by repeatedly freezing to ?196°C with liquid nitrogen and then thawing with an ethanol slurry at ?110°C through a series of metal and Pyrex traps. The purified gas is then condensed into a Pyrex sample tube before it is transferred to an isotope ratio mass spectrometer for silicon isotope ratio measurements. This system has silicon yields of greater than 90% for pure quartz, olivine, and garnet standards and has a reproducibility of ±0.1‰ (2σ) for pure quartz for both oxygen and silicon isotope measurements. Meteoritic samples were also successfully analyzed to demonstrate this system's ability to measure the isotopic ratio composition of bulk powders with precision. This unique technique allows for the fluorination of planetary material without the need for wet chemistry. Though designed to analyze small aliquots of meteoritic material (1.5 to 3 mg), this approach can also be used to investigate refractory terrestrial samples where traditional fluorination is not suitable.