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COMPOUND-SPECIFIC CARBON AND HYDROGEN ISOTOPE ANALYSIS-FIELD EVIDENCE OF MTBE BIOREMEDIATION
Citation:
Kuder, T., R. Kolhatkar, J T. Wilson*, K. O'Reilly, P. Philip, AND J. Allen. COMPOUND-SPECIFIC CARBON AND HYDROGEN ISOTOPE ANALYSIS-FIELD EVIDENCE OF MTBE BIOREMEDIATION. Presented at NGWA Conference on MTBE Assessment, Baltimore, MD, June 05 - 06, 2003.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public.
Description:
Chemical reactions (including bio- and abiotic degradation) tend to favor molecules with the lighter isotopic species (e.g., 12C, 1H), resulting in enrichment of the heavier isotopic species (13C, D) in the unreacted substrate, referred to as isotopic fractionation. On the other hand, processes such as volatilization, sorption etc., result in minimal degree of fractionation and do not interfere with the signal due to degradation. Isotopic fractionation can be mathematically expressed by the Rayleigh model (e.g., for carbon: d13C of unreacted substrate remains in a linear relationship with a logarithmic decrease of substrate concentration; the slope of the linear function is referred to as enrichment factor).