Isotope fractionation Isotope fractionation Isotope fractionation describes processes that affect the relative abundance of isotopes, often used in isotope geochemistry. Normally, the focus is on stable isotopes of the same element. Isotopic fractionation in the natural environment can be measured by isotope analysis, using isotope-ratio mass spectrometry, to separate different element isotopes on the basis of their mass-to-charge ratio, an important tool to understand natural systems. For example, in biochemistry processes cause a fluctuation in the amount of isotopes of carbon ratios incorporated into a biological being. The difference between the true amount of carbon and the amount in the plant is
Isotopes of nobelium Isotopes of nobelium Nobelium (No) is a synthetic element, and thus a standard atomic weight cannot be given. Like all synthetic elements, it has no stable isotopes. The first isotope to be synthesized (and correctly identified) was No in 1966. There are 12 known radioisotopes, which are No to No and No, and 3 isomers, No, No, and No. The longest-lived isotope is No with a half-life of 58 minutes. The longest-lived isomer is No with a half-life of 1.7 seconds. This cold fusion reaction was first studied in 1979 at the FLNR. Further work in 1988 at the GSI