APPLICATIONS OF OXYGEN AND

CARBON ISOTOPES IN
QUATERNARY

ANAGHA S MOHAN
EGE052005
 WHAT IS AN ISOTOPE?
 Although each element has a unique atomic number , many elements are characterized by atoms
with different atomic mass numbers.
 Atoms of the same element that possess different mass numbers are called ISOTOPES.
 There are stable and unstable or radioactive isotopes:
Stable Isotopes have a stable nuclei that tend to remain unchanged i.e. they retain the same
number of protons and neutrons.
Radioactive Isotopes have an unstable configuration in which the number of protons and
neutrons changes spontaneously over time until they achieve stable nuclear configurations.
 Both types of isotopes are extremely useful in solving geological and environmental problems.
OXYGEN ISOTOPES
 ABUNDANCE OF OXYGEN
ISOTOPES
 APPLICATIONS
 The variations in oxygen ratios are used in tracking both water movement, paleoclimatic
conditions and for the estimation of atmospheric gases like ozone and carbon dioxide.
 The oxygen isotope ratios in fossilized foraminifera have been used to deduce the temperature
of ancient seas.
 Oxygen isotopes also records detailed changes in ocean temperature and Ice volume.
 The most extensive use of oxygen isotopes have been in deep sea cores of Cenozoic, especially
in quaternary sediments (from calcitic foraminifera) which record the fluctuating temperatures.
 The application of oxygen isotope analysis to deep oceanic sediments had the greatest impact
in Quaternary Science.
 This method not only provides one of the principal indices of global environmental change
during the Quaternary, but also serves as a basis for global stratigraphic subdivision and
correlation.
 The marine oxygen isotope record convincingly demonstrated the influence of the
Milankovitch Radiation Cycles on the Earth’s climatic history.
 Oxygen isotope analyses also gives information about the cave speleothems and lake
carbonates.
 The variation in isotopic composition of ocean waters over time can be reconstructed from δ
O-18 values of carbonate shells and skeletons preserved in deep-sea sediments.
 The O-18/O-16 ratio provides important information concerning the Earth’s history.
 Oxygen ratios are measured relative to Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water(VSMOW)
or Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite(VPDB).
 The oxygen ratios are generally expressed with respect to a standard in terms of
δ O-18 .
 The standard is the O-18/O-16 ratio in a belemnite from the cretaceous Pee Dee
Formation of South Carolina , called PDB.
 δ O-18 is usually expressed in parts per thousand and calculated from:
 Because the Cretaceous was an unusually warm period in Earths history , with high
evaporation rates, PDB has an unusually high O-18/O-16 ratio.
 As a result, most Pliocene - Pleistocene samples have a negative δO-18, with small negative
numbers recording maximum glacial ice volumes and larger negative numbers recording
minimum glacial ice volumes.
 Because different organisms selectively fractionate O-18 and O-16 , a range of organisms
must be analyzed and the results averaged when determining global changes in O-18/O-16 .
 Higher O-18/O-16 ratios in ocean water record higher temperatures which cause increased
evaporation and removal of O-16.
 It was quickly understood that organisms using oxygen to make calcium carbonate (CaCO3)
shells could preserve this information as carbonate sediments accumulated on the sea floor
over time.
 Such sediments would have the potential to record changes in water temperature over time,
especially when the changes are large and the signal is clear.
 Glaciers expand when more snow accumulates each year than is ablated, leading to a net
growth in glacial ice volume.
 Because atmospheric water vapor largely originated by evaporation, it is enriched in O-16 and
has a low O-18/O-16 ratio.
 As glaciers expand, they store huge volumes of water with low O-18/O-16 ratios, causing the
O-18/O-16 ratio in ocean water to progressively expand.
 As a result, periods of maximum glacial ice volume correlate with global periods of
maximum O-18/O-16 in marine sediments.
 Thus the oxygen isotope traces through cores of deep-ocean sediment reveals records of
Glacial-Inter glacial changes spanning in the whole of the quaternary.
CARBON ISOTOPES
APPLICATIONS
 The analysis of carbon isotopes in marine sediments can provide valuable data on
oceanographic changes during the Quaternary.
 The stable isotopes of carbon (C-12 & C-13) are fractionated during a range of natural
processes.
 C-13/C-12 ratios are generally expressed with respect to a standard in terms of δ C-13.

 The standard once gain is the ratio in a belemnite from the cretaceous Pee Dee
Formation of South Carolina , called PDB.
 δ C-13 is usually expressed in parts per thousand.
APPLICATIONS
 The δ C-13 profiles in marine sediment sequences shows cyclic variations and
thereby reflect important environmental changes.
 These carbon isotopes are used to reconstruct the changes in ocean circulation
patterns, marine productivity , air-sea gas exchanges and biosphere carbon storage.
 The carbon isotope data in planktonic foramnifera provide information on former
productivity changes in the upper layers of the ocean.
 Carbon isotopes are also employed to determine the organic and inorganic origin of
carbon bearing materials in samples and in distinguishing marine and non-marine
deposits.
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