The sulfur isotopic composition of natural samples can be determined by Elemental Analysis-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (EA-IRMS), by Dual Inlet-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (DI-IRMS), by Multi-Collector-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (MC-ICPMS), by Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS), or by Nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry (NanoSIMS). MC-ICPMS can be paired with gas chromatography (GC-MC-ICPMS) to separate certain volatile compounds in a sample and measure the sulfur isotopic composition of individual compounds.
The sulfur isotopic compositions of minerals and porewater in sediment are subject to accumulation and diffusion after burial. Reactive transport models are often used to account for the effect of such physical processes and find out the isotopic effect of the process studied.