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Training: Stable Oxygen and Carbon Isotope Analysis, University of Graz, Austria (January 2025)
In January 2025, PhD student Katja Mužek spent one week at the Department of Geology at the Karl-Franzens University in Graz, where she participated in laboratory activities related to the analysis of stable oxygen and carbon isotopes on fossil ostracod and mollusk shells. As part of the sample preparation process, she followed a detailed cleaning protocol, which involved the double addition of 50 μL Milli-Q water, followed by methanol. The samples were then agitated using a Vortex mixer for 10 seconds and subsequently dried in a laboratory oven at 40–50 °C until complete evaporation of all liquid. After drying, the samples were weighed to approximately 50 micrograms and prepared for mass spectrometry analysis.
Shells laboratory preparation for detailed cleaning
Shells weighing for mass spectrometer