Who we are: The Environmental Stable Isotope Lab at OU (ESIL@OU) offers stable isotope analytical services. ESIL@OU was established with funding from the College of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Biology, the Department of Plant Biology and Microbiology, and the Oklahoma Biological Survey. We specialize in bulk light stable isotope analysis of solid organic samples (carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen) and in the isotopic analysis of waters (hydrogen and oxygen).
Why us? We specialize in isotopic analysis of organic samples for ecological studies. We can provide advice on study design before you collect your samples to help you make your science as rigorous as possible. We can provide advice on analytical techniques of isotopic ecological data. Above all we are ecologists who love stable isotopes, not isotope geochemists who run a commercial lab, and we want to serve the ecological community to encourage the use of stable isotopes!
Equipment: We have a Thermo Delta V Advantage Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer, a Thermo FlashEA for analysis of carbon and nitrogen in solid samples, and a Thermo TC/EA for analysis of hydrogen and oxygen in solid and liquid samples.
Training: A major benefit of having this lab on campus is the opportunities it provides for faculty and students to gain hands-on experience in using the instruments.
Use fees: We charge a fee for users on a per sample basis to cover running costs. We strive to keep costs lower than what it might cost to send samples to an external lab. A base fee schedule is below, discounts are frequently provided for large numbers of samples, providing your own reference material, collaborators, etc.
Bulk analysis of carbon and nitrogen in solids (d13C, d15N): $7.50/sample
Bulk analysis of hydrogen and oxygen in solids (d2H, d18O): $11.00/sample
Isotopic analysis of hydrogen and oxygen in liquids (d2H, d18O): $11.50/sample
Location and Contact info: We are located in Sutton Hall 108 at the Norman campus. For more information regarding the lab and its services, contact Daniel Allen, dcallen@ou.edu.
