Reconstructing ancient seawater isotopes using hydrogen isotopic composition of organic biomarkers
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Employer: NIOZ |
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Job location: Texel Netherlands |
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Apply before: 30 Oct 2019 |
Summary
This project aims to extend the method to other organic compounds including isoprenoids such as phytane, and combine this with bulk and/or foraminifera based d18O analyses to better understand seawater isotopes, d18O based temperature reconstructions, timing of glaciations and ice volume and salinity variability in the past.
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Project description: The stable oxygen isotopic composition of foraminifera has been paramount in defining climate events over the Cenozoic, but unfortunately their 18O content does not only reflect changes in temperature but also in the 18O content of sea water. We will use an alternative method of constraining the evolution of the 18Osea water by analysing the d2H of organic biomarkers derived from photoautotrophs. Since 2H and 18O are directly coupled in sea water and the d2H of organic biomarkers is not affected by temperature nor, in case of isoprenoid compounds, by salinity, this proxy may allow an independent view of the isotopic changes of sea water over the Cenozoic. So far most of the biomarker d2H analyses in the marine realm have been done on haptophyte derived alkenones to reconstruct paleo sea surface salinity. This project aims to extend the method to other organic compounds including isoprenoids such as phytane, and combine this with bulk and/or foraminifera based d18O analyses to better understand seawater isotopes, d18O based temperature reconstructions, timing of glaciations and ice volume and salinity variability in the past.
Supervisors: Schouten (NIOZ), van der Meer
Host institute: NIOZ
Required background/expertise: Geochemistry, stable isotopes, earth sciences
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