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Isotope fractionation occurs during a phase transition, when the ratio of light to heavy isotopes in the involved molecules changes. When water vapor condenses (an equilibrium fractionation), the heavier water isotopes (18 O and 2 H) become enriched in the liquid phase while the lighter isotopes (16 O and 1 H) tend toward the vapor phase. [1]
Equilibrium isotope fractionation is the partial separation of isotopes between two or more substances in chemical equilibrium. Equilibrium fractionation is strongest at low temperatures, and (along with kinetic isotope effects) forms the basis of the most widely used isotopic paleothermometers (or climate proxies): D/H and 18 O/ 16 O records from ice cores, and 18 O/ 16 O records from calcium ...
Fractionation makes it possible to isolate more than two components in a mixture in a single run. This property sets it apart from other separation techniques. Fractionation is widely employed in many branches of science and technology. Mixtures of liquids and gasses are separated by fractional distillation by difference in boiling point.
Stable isotope tracers involve only non-radiogenic isotopes and usually are mass-dependent. In theory, any element with two stable isotopes can be used as an isotopic tracer. However, the most commonly used stable isotope tracers involve relatively light isotopes, which readily undergo fractionation in natural systems. See also isotopic signature.
Figure 2 Figure 3 - Isotopic Fractionation Sources. The atoms hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon co-exist naturally in specific proportions with their stable isotopes, 2H (or D), 18O and 13C respectively, in different proportions as shown in the figure 2 below. The amount and distribution of the different isotopes in a molecule is influenced by: [5]
Denitrification can lead to a condition called isotopic fractionation in the soil environment. The two stable isotopes of nitrogen, 14 N and 15 N are both found in the sediment profiles. The lighter isotope of nitrogen, 14 N, is preferred during denitrification, leaving the heavier nitrogen isotope, 15 N, in the residual matter.
Stable isotopes do not decay, and the heavy and light isotope masses affect how they partition within the environment. Any deviation from a random distribution of the light and heavy isotopes within the environment is called fractionation, and consistent fractionations as a result of a particular process or reaction are called "isotope effects."
An example of a mass independent process is the fractionation of oxygen atoms in ozone. This is due to the kinetic isotope effect (KIE) and is caused by different isotope molecules reacting at different speeds. [1] An example of a mass dependent process is the fractionation of water as it transitions from the liquid to gas phase.