Grant: Research Tools and Instruments

We are requesting a solid phase C, N, and S analyser (CHNS) with a built-in auto sampler and a high precision (0.00001g) analytical balance. The analyser will measure C and N concentrations in plant leaves, plant litter, soils, and sediments, with the findings linked to important terrestrial ecosystem level processes (decomposition, N mineralisation, general nutrient cycling)(Lindo, Henry), and data used to parameterize energetic food web models for detrital systems (Lindo). It will also be used to measure total C, N, and S and organic C in terrestrial soils and aquatic sediments in order to understand the fate and transport of environmental contaminants (Branfireun, Macfie). The CHNS system will also be used for innovative analysis of phytoplankton (Branfireun) and soil organisms (Lindo) that will provide novel contributions to these research programmes.Analysis of C, N, and S in plant tissues and litter, soils and sediments, and integral components of aquatic (phytoplankton) and terrestrial (soil organisms) food webs will allow us to support fundamental, cutting-edge research into controls on biodiversity, microbial decomposition, and Hg transformation spanning from biomolecular to ecosystem scales across Canadian ecosystems.