Journal Highlight: Guidelines and recommended terms for expression of stable-isotope-ratio and gas-ratio measurement results

Guidelines and recommended terms for expression of stable-isotope-ratio and gas-ratio measurement results

Recommendations of the Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights 2011

Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 2011, 25, 2538-2560
Tyler B. Coplen

Abstract: To minimize confusion in the expression of measurement results of stable isotope and gas-ratio measurements, recommendations based on publications of the Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) are presented. Whenever feasible, entries are consistent with the Système International d'Unités, the SI (known in English as the International System of Units), and the third edition of the International Vocabulary of Basic and General Terms in Metrology (VIM, 3rd edition). The recommendations presented herein are approved by the Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights and are designed to clarify expression of quantities related to measurement of isotope and gas ratios to ensure that quantity equations instead of numerical value equations are used for quantity definitions. Examples of column headings consistent with quantity calculus (also called the algebra of quantities) and examples of various deprecated usages connected with the terms recommended are presented.

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