Determination of δ18O and δ15N in Nitrate

Abstract

The analyses of both O and N isotopic compositions of nitrate have many potential applications in studies of nitrate sources and reactions in hydrology, oceanography, and atmospheric chemistry, but simple and precise methods for these analyses have yet to be developed. Testing of a new method involving reaction of potassium nitrate with catalyzed graphite (C + Pd + Au) at 520 °C resulted in quantitative recovery of N and O from nitrate as free CO(2), K(2)CO(3), and N(2). The δ(18)O values of nitrate reference materials were obtained by analyzing both the CO(2) and K(2)CO(3) from catalyzed graphite combustion. Provisional values of δ(18)O(VSMOW) for the internationally distributed KNO(3) reference materials IAEA-N3 and USGS-32 were both equal to +22.7 ± 0.5‰. Because the fraction of free CO(2) and the isotopic fractionation factor between CO(2) and K(2)CO(3) were constant in the combustion products, the δ(18)O value of KNO(3) could be calculated from measurements of the δ(18)O of free CO(2). Thus, δ(18)O(KNO)((3)) = aδ(18)O(free)( )(CO)((2)) - b, where a and b were equal to 0.9967 and 3.3, respectively, for the specific conditions of the experiments. The catalyzed graphite combustion method can be used to determine δ(18)O of KNO(3) from measurements of δ(18)O of free CO(2) with reproducibility on the order of ±0.2‰ or better if local reference materials are prepared and analyzed with the samples. Reproducibility of δ(15)N was ±0.1‰ after trace amounts of CO were removed.