Carbon-14 by the C urea breath test, which has no radiation issues. Carbon-14 Carbon-14, (C), or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and colleagues (1949) to date archaeological, geological and hydrogeological samples. Carbon-14 was discovered on February 27, 1940, by Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben at the University of California Radiation Laboratory in Berkeley, California. Its existence had been suggested by Franz Kurie in 1934. There are three naturally occurring isotopes of carbon
Isotope-ratio mass spectrometry isotope, mass 16) have a mass of 18. Water incorporating a deuterium atom has a mass of 19, over 5% heavier. The energy to vaporise the heavy water molecule is higher than that to vaporize the normal water so isotope fractionation occurs during the process of evaporation. Thus a sample of sea water will exhibit a quite detectable isotopic-ratio difference when compared to Antarctic snowfall. Samples must be introduced to the mass spectrometer as pure gases, achieved through combustion, gas chromatographic feeds, or chemical trapping. By comparing the detected isotopic ratios to a measured standard, an accurate determination of the