Isotope fractionation describes

fractionation Fractionation is a separation process in which a certain quantity of a mixture (of gases, solids, liquids, enzymes, or isotopes, or a suspension) is divided during a phase transition, into a number of smaller quantities (fractions) in which the ...

processes that affect the relative abundance of isotopes, phenomena which are taken advantage of in

isotope geochemistry Isotope geochemistry is an aspect of geology based upon the study of natural variations in the relative abundances of isotopes of various elements. Variations in isotopic abundance are measured by isotope ratio mass spectrometry, and can reveal ...

and other fields. Normally, the focus is on

stable isotope The term stable isotope has a meaning similar to stable nuclide, but is preferably used when speaking of nuclides of a specific element. Hence, the plural form stable isotopes usually refers to isotopes of the same element. The relative abundanc ...

s of the same element. Isotopic fractionation can be measured by

isotope analysis Isotope analysis is the identification of isotopic signature, abundance of certain stable isotopes of chemical elements within organic and inorganic compounds. Isotopic analysis can be used to understand the flow of energy through a food web ...

, using

isotope-ratio mass spectrometry Isotope-ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) is a specialization of mass spectrometry, in which mass spectrometric methods are used to measure the relative abundance of isotopes in a given sample. This technique has two different applications in the ea ...

cavity ring-down spectroscopy Cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) is a highly sensitive optical spectroscopic technique that enables measurement of absolute optical extinction by samples that scatter and absorb light. It has been widely used to study gaseous samples which ab ...

to measure ratios of isotopes, an important tool to understand geochemical and biological systems. For example,

biochemical Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology an ...

processes cause changes in ratios of stable

carbon isotopes Carbon (6C) has 15 known isotopes, from to , of which and are stable. The longest-lived radioisotope is , with a half-life of years. This is also the only carbon radioisotope found in nature—trace quantities are formed cosmogenically by t ...

incorporated into biomass.

Definition

Stable isotopes partitioning between two substances ''A'' and ''B'' can be expressed by the use of the isotopic fractionation factor (alpha): where ''R'' is the ratio of the heavy to light isotope (e.g., ²H/¹H or ¹⁸O/¹⁶O). Values for alpha tend to be very close to 1. McGlynn, Shawn E.; "Biological Isotope Fractionation and Earth History: From Enzymes to Cells to Ecosystems" pp 59-79 in "Metals, Microbes and Minerals: The Biogeochemical Side of Life" (2021) pp xiv + 341. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin. Editors Kroneck, Peter M.H. and Sosa Torres, Martha
DOI 10.1515/9783110589771-003

Types

There are four types of isotope fractionation (of which the first two are normally most important):

equilibrium fractionation 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 ...

kinetic fractionation Kinetic fractionation is an isotopic fractionation process that separates stable isotopes from each other by their mass during unidirectional processes. Biological processes are generally unidirectional and are very good examples of "kinetic" isot ...

mass-independent fractionation Mass-independent isotope fractionation or Non-mass-dependent fractionation (NMD), refers to any chemical or physical process that acts to separate isotopes, where the amount of separation does not scale in proportion with the difference in the mass ...

(or non-mass-dependent fractionation), and

transient kinetic isotope fractionation Transient kinetic isotope effects (or fractionation) occur when the Chemical reaction, reaction leading to isotope fractionation does not follow pure First order kinetics, first-order kinetics and therefore isotopic effects cannot be described w ...

Example

Isotope fractionation occurs during a

phase transition In chemistry, thermodynamics, and other related fields, a phase transition (or phase change) is the physical process of transition between one state of a medium and another. Commonly the term is used to refer to changes among the basic states of ...

, when the ratio of light to heavy isotopes in the involved molecules changes. When

water vapor (99.9839 °C) , - , Boiling point , , - , specific gas constant , 461.5 J/( kg·K) , - , Heat of vaporization , 2.27 MJ/kg , - , Heat capacity , 1.864 kJ/(kg·K) Water vapor, water vapour or aqueous vapor is the gaseous pha ...

condenses (an

), the heavier water isotopes (¹⁸O and ²H) become enriched in the liquid phase while the lighter isotopes (¹⁶O and ¹H) tend toward the vapor phase.

References

Literature

*Faure G., Mensing T.M. (2004), ''Isotopes: Principles and Applications'' (

John Wiley & Sons John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, in p ...

). *Hoefs J., 2004. ''Stable Isotope Geochemistry'' (

Springer Verlag Springer Science+Business Media, commonly known as Springer, is a German multinational publishing company of books, e-books and peer-reviewed journals in science, humanities, technical and medical (STM) publishing. Originally founded in 1842 in ...

). *Sharp Z., 2006. ''Principles of Stable Isotope Geochemistry'' (

Prentice Hall Prentice Hall was an American major educational publisher owned by Savvas Learning Company. Prentice Hall publishes print and digital content for the 6–12 and higher-education market, and distributes its technical titles through the Safari B ...

). Fractionation {{chemistry-stub

Definition

Types

Example

See also

References

Literature