Advances in Stable Isotope Geochemistry

EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCES 566

The development of non-traditional isotope geochemistry in the past decade has greatly expanded our understanding of many facets of Earth and planetary sciences. Over 1000 papers have been published using non-traditional isotopes to study the origin of the solar system the formation of planetary bodies, the differentiation of mantle and core, the evolution of the crust, the changes of paleo-climate, the global geochemical cycle of elements, and the genesis of natural resources. This course will survey these new isotope systems in either high-temperature igneous differentiation or low-temperature environments. It aims to help students understand the wide applications of these new isotopes in tracing chemical, biological and physical processes. The course is divided into two parts. Part I will first introduce the principles and theories of non-traditional isotopic fractionation and then it will review analytical methods that are primarily used for non-traditional isotopes such as MC-ICP-MS, TIMS and SIMS. Part II will dive into individual isotopic systems (Li, Mg, Si, Cl, Ca, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, Se, Mo, Hg, Ti and U stable isotopes) and it will focus on one or two of their main applications. Prereqs: EPS 441 (Introduction to Geochemistry) or EPS 446 (Stable Isotope Geochemistry), or permission of instructor.
Course Attributes: FA NSM; AR NSM

Section 01

Advances in Stable Isotope Geochemistry
INSTRUCTOR: Wang