A laser extraction/combustion technique for in situ δ13C analysis of organic and inorganic materials

✍ Scribed by Michael E. Wieser; Willi A. Brand

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 140 KB
• Volume: 13
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0951-4198
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0231(19990715)13:13<1218::aid-rcm652>3.0.co;2-c

✦ Synopsis

A CO 2 laser extraction system is described for in situ d 13 C analysis of organic and inorganic materials. Carbonaceous compounds volatilized by the laser are quantitatively converted to CO 2 gas by a combustion furnace mounted after the sample chamber. Gases produced by the laser and combustion processes are swept by helium carrier gas and separated by a packed gas chromatography column prior to their introduction to an isotope ratio monitoring mass spectrometer. A sample of lentil bean was analyzed at a spatial resolution of 200 mm and yielded d 13 C values with precision of AE 0.3%. The accuracy of d 13 C measurements was better than AE 0.5% from NBS 22 (mineral oil), USGS 24 (graphite), and IAEA CO-1 (calcium carbonate).