This award provides funding to acquire an Accelerated Solvent Extractor (ASE) and a Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) at University of Alabama (UA). These two instruments are essential for reliable lipid analysis, which is the core research tool utilized by the PI to understand organic matter cycling in aquatic environments. Lipids are important tracers indicating sources, quality and preservation of organic matter in contemporary and paleo-ecosystems. Examples of application from the PI's past and on-going research projects include: reconstructing environmental changes in the Lake Erie during the development and remediation of its cultural eutrophication; understanding the effects of human development in watershed on organic matter cycling within aquatic environments; and developing biomarkers for sulfide-tolerate microbes that inhabited oceans during past periods of anaerobicity.
The instrumentation provides state-of-the-art technological support for research and education in Earth Sciences at UA. It enables the PI, an early career organic geochemist, to develop an independent research program, establish cross-disciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration and attract quality graduate students. The instruments further enhance the research capacity of a research consortium at UA investigating past climatic and environmental changes, which comprises a group of diverse and talented faculty members and students. This enhanced infrastructure allows more effective integration of research, teaching and student training. A variety of courses in geological and environmental sciences will benefit from hands-on activities, such as analyzing environmental pollutants or identifying compounds indicating activities of past organisms. Currently, 12 students (5 undergraduates and 7 graduates) are conducting research projects requiring the use of the requested instruments. Most importantly, the research topics supported by the new instrumentation have important society values, including understanding distribution and metabolism of organic pollutants, and elucidating factors governing climate changes.
This fund was used to acquire two essential instruments for lipid analyses: a Dionex Accelerated Solvent Extractor (ASE) 350 for lipid extraction and an Agilent Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (7890B GC-5977A MSD) for lipid identification and quantification. The PI is an early career organic geochemist at University of Alabama (UA), relying on lipid analyses as one of her core research tools to understand sources, quantity, quality, and preservation of organic matter in contemporary and paleo-ecosystems. The Co-PI has multiple active projects involving lipid analysis. The two instruments have been purchased, installed, and calibrated, and are now actively supporting research projects of multiple researchers. Results are highlighted by two graduate students’ dissertation/thesis projects: 1) E. C. Chapman (2014) "role of geomorphology in large river biogeochemical processing", where lipids were used to evaluate organic matter quality in a sixth order, large Coastal Plain river, the Cahaba River, AL. Organic carbon quantity and quality was linked to ecosystem metabolism and microbial communities. The results show concurrent changes in lipid composition, heterotrophic microbial community composition, and increased whole ecosystem primary production and respiration, suggesting the importance of large rivers in retaining carbon; 2) M. Lu (2015) "sedimentological and geochemical records of depositional environments of the Devonian Chattanooga Shale", where hydrocarbons were analyzed to determine the sources, maturity, and the depositional environments of the organic matter in late Devonian black shales. Results suggest that organic matter is mature and derived from mixed aquatic and terrestrial sources. Algal organic matter dominated, and terrigenous and bacterial contributions were minor. Notably, variations in aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons both show increased contributions of terrestrial organic matter during the later stages of the deposition. This pattern, in conjunction with higher relative abundance of quartz and grain sizes, indicates that the depositional environment became shallower and more proximal to the land, whereby terrestrial plants became a more important source of carbon to the shales. This finding implies plant diversification on land in Late Devonian may play an important part in the formation of unfossiliferous Devonian shales. From these projects, two peer-reviewed papers are under preparation, and seven conference presentations have been generated. The instruments enhance and enrich teaching of multiple courses including "Organic Geochemistry", "Advanced Environmental Geochemistry". Overall, the instrumentation provides state-of-the-art technological support for research and education in Earth Sciences at UA. It enables the PI, an early career organic geochemist, to develop an independent research program, establish cross-disciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration, and attract quality graduate students, and to integrate research, teaching and student training more effectively.
