Dual-Inlet Instrument Use Policy

UCSC's Stable Isotope Laboratory Dual-Inlet instruments Prism, Optima, and Keil-253 are shared instruments open to faculty, researchers, and students who have been trained to use the instruments.

UCSC's Stable Isotope Laboratory encourages researchers and students to operate the instrumentation themselves (after training) so that users of the facility gain a better understanding of the data generation process, instrumentation, and post-run data processing. Particularly for students this hands-on experience is intended to bolster their competence and confidence in working with and understanding analytical instrumentation.

Primary Use Guideline:

As a shared facility the primary use guideline is to be respectful of other users of the instruments. As such, you are expected to leave the instrument and support infrastructure in a state you would like to find it yourself. This includes basic cleanliness, but also encompasses thoughtful use of the instruments so as not to compromise the research needs other users by means of introducing contaminants or damaging the equipment through negligence. If in doubt, please consult with the laboratory manager.

Access:

1) Users must have been trained to use the instruments and received approval by the lab manager before operating the instruments and for access to the calendar.

2) Each of the three primary research groups - Koch, Ravelo, and Zachos - are guaranteed two days per week (if needed) on each dual-inlet machine, provided they sign up by 5 pm on Thursday in advance of the ensuing week. Open, unclaimed instrument days after 5 pm Thursday are available for all users for sign-up.

3) Trained users not associated with the Koch, Ravelo, and Zachos research groups may sign up at any time in advance of their run, however their slot is not guaranteed and they may have to relinquish their spot to members of the primary research groups. These occurrences are rare.

4) Users may sign up for a maximum of two days per week per instrument, unless prior arrangements have been made.

5) Users are strongly encouraged to do full runs that occupy ca. 20 hours on instrument time each day. Where practical, please wait and combine partial runs into full runs.

Prompt and Attentive use:

Users are expected to begin setting up a run by 9 am the morning they signed up to use the equipment, and strive to have the instrument in operation before noon. Users not having shown by 10:30 am risk having their time lost to somebody who is ready to run that day.

Users are expected to monitor their runs throughout the day. Please do not start a run and ignore it thereby leaving run problems to other people to have to address. The user is responsible for their run and data.

Cleanliness:

Please clean up after yourself as outlined in the operating procedures. As a shared facility and for efficient use of the instrumentation please clean up and be considerate of other users.

Run Problems:

Instrument problems often occur. If a user encounters a problem with the previous days run their action is dependent upon the nature of the problem. Instrument problems are divided into two categories: 1) Operator error (e.g., failure to monitor their run, inappropriate set-up) . 2) "Acts of God" (e.g., the liquid nitrogen pump hose detaches or cracks).

Operator Error: If a run hasn't progressed to completion by 8 am of the following day due to operator error or neglect the policy is that the run is stopped, remaining samples are removed, and that days user prepares and executes their run on schedule.

Acts of God: If a run hasn't progressed to completion by 8 am of the following day due to an unforeseen problem that does not reflect negligence by the user then how to proceed is best resolved by consultation between the two users and perhaps the lab manager. If the operator of the problem run is unavailable, then that days user may decide to either let the problem run continue to completion, after the problem is repaired, or stop the run and start theirs on time.

NEWS & EVENTS

November 2009

UCSC's SIL retires its 15 year-old dual-inlet Optima following a very productive career that generated over 40,000 data points.

November 2009

Two Tsavo Lions In Famed Killings Get Partial Reprieve according to UCSC Graduate Student Justin Yeakel as inteviewed on NPR's All Things Considered. Listen here:

July-August 2009

SIL co-director Christina Ravelo (Ocean Sciences) sails as co-chief scientist on Integrated Ocean Drilling Project (IODP) Expedition 323 to investigate Bearing Sea Paleoceanography.

December 2008

SIL co-director Christina Ravelo (Ocean Sciences) gives the 2008 Emiliani Lecture at the American Geophysical Union Meeting in San Francisco on "Lessons from the Pliocene Warm Period and the Onset of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation".

September 2008:

UCSC SIL has been funded by the National Science Foundation for a new Dual-Inlet Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer with individual acid drip system for very small calcium carbonate samples.

July 2008:

SIL co-director Jim Zachos (Earth and Planetary Sciences) recieves prestigious Humbolt Research Award. See Humbolt Award for details.

May 19, 2006: UCSC Stable Isotope Laboratory Symposium

In recognition of the new continuous flow instruments added to the UCSC stable isotope facility a Symposium is being run to highlight the new analytical capabilities.