Non-traditional stable isotopes (including Si, K, Ca, Fe, Mo, U, etc.) refer to a group of elements that cannot be measured using traditional gas stable isotope mass spectrometers. The core issues in non-traditional stable isotope research are: (1) high-quality isotope analysis methods, (2) isotope tracing principles, including determining the isotopic composition of important reservoirs and understanding isotope fractionation mechanisms, and (3) applying non-traditional stable isotopes in tracing geochemical processes. The advent and development of multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) greatly advances the technology of non-traditional stable isotope analysis. Nowadays, MC-ICP-MS has the advantages of high precision and high sensitivity, and can perform high-precision isotope analysis for more than 40 elements in the periodic table, making it the preferred analytical instrument for non-traditional stable isotope research.
The laboratory is equipped with the third-generation multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer Neoma, produced by the German company Thermo Fisher Scientific. The instrument is equipped with a new collision/reaction cell with mass filtering function, an advanced Qtegra software operation platform, and a series of hardware and software improvements. Based on Neptune, the instrument’s performance and user-friendliness have been further enhanced. The new collision/reaction cell (MS/MS) with a unique pre-pole mass filter can effectively remove interferences caused by argon through reactions with specific gases.
Currently, the laboratory focuses on improving existing isotope systems (such as Mg, Cu, Zn, Fe, Si, Mo) and developing new methods for non-traditional stable isotopes (such as K, Ca, Ge), in order to expand their application in the research of sedimentary and biogeochemistry. The main research topics include the co-evolution of early life and environment, continental weathering processes, paleo-ocean productivity, paleo-ocean redox states, and surface Earth system element cycles.
