Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Reporting of variations in the natural isotopic composition of mercury

  • Technical Note
  • Published:
Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

High-precision measurements of natural variations in the stable isotopic composition of mercury show great promise as a new tracer of mercury sources and chemical transformations in the environment. We strongly suggest that all laboratories adopt a common means of data correction, standardization, and nomenclature in order to ensure that data from various laboratories can be easily evaluated and compared. We make suggestions for mass bias correction, reporting of mass-dependent and mass-independent isotope variations, and a standard protocol for reporting analytical uncertainties. We also present our measured values for isotope ratios in several mercury standard solutions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Lauretta DS, Klaue B, Blum JD, Buseck PR (2001) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 65:2807–2818

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Jackson TA (2001) Can J Fish Aquat Sci 58:185–196

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Jackson TA, Muir DCG, Vincent WF (2004) Environ Sci Technol 38:2813–2821

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Xie Q, Lu S, Evans D, Dillon P, Hintelmann H (2005) J Anal At Spectrom 20:515–522

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Hintelmann H, Lu SY (2003) Analyst 128:635–639

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Smith CN, Kesler SE, Klaue B, Blum JD (2005) Geology 33:825–828

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Foucher D, Hintelmann H (2006) Anal Bioanal Chem 384:1470–1478

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Pickhardt PC, Folt CL, Chen CY, Klaue B, Blum JD (2002) Proc Nat Acad Sci 99:4419–4423

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Pickhardt PC, Folt CL, Chen CY, Klaue B, Blum JD (2004) Sci Total Environ 339:89–101

    Google Scholar 

  10. Graydon JA, St Louis VL, Lindberg SE, Hintelmann H, Krabbenhoft DP (2006) Environ Sci Technol 40:4680–4688

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Orihel DM, Paterson MJ, Gilmour CC, Bodaly RA, Blanchfield PJ, Hintelmann H, Harris RC, Rudd JWM (2006) Environ Sci Technol 40:5992–6000

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Hintelmann H, Harris R, Heyes A, Kelly CA, Krabbenhoft DP, Lindberg S, Rudd JWM, Scott KJ, St Louis VL (2002) Environ Sci Technol 36:5034–5040

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Branfireun BA, Krabbenhoft DP, Hintelmann H, Hunt RJ, Hurley JP, Rudd JWM (2005) Water Resources Res 41:W06016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Eckley CS, Hintelmann H (2006) Sci Total Environ 368:111–125

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Hammerschmidt CR, Fitzgerald WF (2006) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 70:918–930

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Hintelmann H, Evans RD (1997) Fresenius J Anal Chem 358:378–385

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Martin-Doimeadios RCR, Krupp E, Amouroux D, Donard OFX (2002) Anal Chem 74:2505–2512

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Halliday AN, Lee DC, Christensen JN, Rehkamper M, Yi W, Luo XZ, Hall CM, Ballentine CJ, Pettke T, Stirling C (1998) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 62:919–940

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Johnson CM, Beard BL, Albarede F (eds) (2004) Geochemistry of non-traditional stable isotopes. Reviews in mineralogy and geochemisty 55. Mineralogical Society of America, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  20. Johnson CM, Beard BL, Albarede F (2004) In: Johnson CM, Beard BL, Albarede F (eds) Geochemistry of non-traditional stable isotopes. Reviews in mineralogy and geochemistry 55. Mineralogical Society of America, Washington, DC, pp 1–24

    Google Scholar 

  21. Albarede F, Beard BL (2004) In: Johnson CM, Beard BL, Albarede F (eds) Geochemistry of non-traditional stable isotopes. Reviews in mineralogy and geochemistry 55. Mineralogical Society of America, Washington, DC, pp 113–152

    Google Scholar 

  22. Klaue B, Blum JD (1999) Anal Chem 71:1408–1414

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. IRMM (2006) Certificate of analysis ERM-AE639. Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements, European Commission—Joint Research Centre

  24. Jackson TA, Whittle DM, Evans MS, Muir DCG (2006) In: The 8th international conference on mercury as a global pollutant, abstract W-116

  25. Bergquist BA, Blum JD, Johnson MW, Biswas A (2006) In: The AGU fall 2006 meeting, Eos Trans AGU 87, fall meeting supplement abstract V13E-06

  26. Jackson TA, Whittle DM, Evans MS, Muir DCG (2006) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 70(18S):A284 (meeting abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  27. Bigeleisen J (1996) J Am Chem Soc 118:3676–3680

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Schauble EA (2006) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 70(18S):A560 (meeting abstract)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Buchachenko A, Ivanov V, Roznyatovsky V, Ustynyuk Y (2006) J Phys Chem A 110:3857–3859

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Buchachenko A, Kouznetsov D, Shishkov A (2004) J Phys Chem A 108:707–710

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Theimens MH (1999) Science 283:341–345

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Farquhar J, Bao H, Thiemens M (2000) Science 289:756–759

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Bigeleisen J (1949) J Chem Phys 17:675–678

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Young ED, Galy A, Nagahara H (2002) Geochim Cosmochim Acta 66:1095–1104

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Goldstein SL, Deines P, Rudnick RL, Walter LM (2003) Chem Geol 202:1–4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Miller JC, Miller JN (1993) Statistics for analytical chemistry, 3rd edn. Prentice Hall, New York

    Google Scholar 

  37. Kritee K, Blum JD, Johnson MW, Bergquist BA, Barkay T (2007) Environ Sci Technol 41:1889–1895

    Google Scholar 

  38. Klaue B, Blum JD (2000) J Conf Abstr 5:591

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank Jerry Keeler, Bjorn Klaue, Marcus Johnson, K. Kritee, Tamar Barkay, Chris Smith, and Abir Biswas for many helpful discussions. This work was funded by grants from NIEHS (ES-07373) and NSF (EAR-0433772) to J.D.B.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biogeochemistry and Environmental Isotope Geochemistry Laboratory, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Michigan, 1100 N. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA

    Joel D. Blum & Bridget A. Bergquist

Authors
  1. Joel D. Blum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bridget A. Bergquist
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joel D. Blum.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Blum, J.D., Bergquist, B.A. Reporting of variations in the natural isotopic composition of mercury. Anal Bioanal Chem 388, 353–359 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-007-1236-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-007-1236-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation