Currently, most IRMS labs are being affected by the helium shortage going on globally. We are working with CU to get the helium we need to run analyses, but are under reduced allocations for the foreseeable future. If you are interested in analyses that will use either the Delta or the CF-253 (compound specific analyses of organic materials), please contact us to find out if we can run your samples. We currently just got a helium tank for the Delta, and expect to run a number of samples in October/November, but there is already a queue starting for that time, and accommodating your request will require additional advance notice.
Located on the main campus of the University of Colorado Boulder in the Geological Sciences Department, the CU Boulder Earth Systems Stable Isotope Laboratory (CUBES-SIL)(PI: Katie Snell) provides services and collaborations with local, national and international researchers and clients.
The CUBES-SIL offers analyses of light stable isotopes in a transparent and reproducible framework. This includes H, C, N, and O in many different sample forms at natural abundances as well as spiked or tracer work. In addition we also do clumped isotope analyses on carbonates. Most analyses are made on a Thermo Scientific Delta V Plus gas source Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer (IRMS); clumped isotope analyses are made on a Thermo Scientific 253 Plus Dual Inlet IRMS.
We believe in being open about how we have collected and reduced data from your samples. All of our data reduction is done in R Markdown files, allowing for full documentation of our QA/QC and the math used to determine isotope ratios. Example: https://isoprocessor.isoverse.org/articles/ea_irms_example_carbon.html. This is aided by the use of Isoreader and Isoprocessor (https://www.isoverse.org/). Your final product will include not only isotope values, but also full documentation of their production, and all original mass spec data files.
We run a research laboratory and are always interested in increasing our analytical capabilities and engaging in interesting problems. Please contact Katie Snell (Clumped DI 253, Delta) or Sebastian Kopf (CF 253) if you have isotope measurement needs that are not listed here.
| Mass spec | Peripheral | Isotope Analyses and Services | Price per Analysis (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delta | EA | Dual 13C & 15N natural abundance sample | $9 |
| Delta | EA | Dual 13C & 15N Difficult samples (Filters, Soils, Sediments, Salts)* | $11 |
| Delta | EA | Weighing, subsampling, acid prep | $5-10 |
| Delta | Gasbench | δ13C and/or δ18O in carbonate and acid injection | $14 |
| Delta | Gasbench | δ13C of DIC | $15 |
| Delta | Gasbench | Weighing, subsampling | $5 |
| Delta | TC/EA | Dual DH and 18O in solid sample | $14 |
| Delta | TC/EA | Weighing, subsampling, acid prep | $5 |
| 253Plus | autoline | Clumped D47 and D48 analysis | $100 |
Please contact Katie Snell for more information: kathryn.snell@colorado.edu