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Ellen R.M. Druffel

Professor, Earth System Science

Adjunct Professor - Research Associate, IOD, Scripps, UCSD

Co-Director, Keck Carbon Cycle AMS

Adjunct Professor, Urban Water Research Center


Ph.D., U.C. San Diego, Chemistry


B.S., Loyola Marymount University, Chemistry

Phone: (949) 824-2116
Fax: (949) 824-3874
Email: edruffel@uci.edu

University of California, Irvine
Croul Hall 3222
Mail Code: 3100
Irvine, CA 92697

picture of Ellen R.M. Druffel

Research
Interests
Changes in past ocean circulation and ventilation; sources and cycling of marine dissolved and particulate carbon using AMS
   
URL Druffel Lab website
   
Academic
Distinctions
American Institute of Chemists Award, 1975
Macelwane Medal, AGU, 1990
Fellow of AGU and AAAS
Hall of Fame, Loyola Marymount Univ. 2001
Ruth Patrick Award, American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, 2004
UCI NSF Advance Chair, 2003-present
   
Research
Abstract
The goals of my research group are twofold. First, we aspire to understand why the 14C age of marine dissolved organic carbon is thousands of years old, despite our belief that most of it is produced recently in the surface ocean during photosynthesis. Second, how has circulation changed in the tropical Pacific during the past millennium? We use accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) and preparative capillary gas chromatography (PCGC) to measure radiocarbon in samples as small as 2µg C. We study coral from the Pacific and Atlantic to reconstruct seasonal-to-annual records of isotopes that lend themselves well to reconstruction of past temperature, salinity and upwelling strength in surface waters.

Recent doctoral graduate students in our group include Carrie Masiello (2000, now Professor at Rice University), Jeomshik Hwang (2004, now Professor at POSTECH, Pohang, Korea), Steve Beaupré (2007, now postdoc in our group) and Lori Ziolkowski (planning to graduate in 2009).
   
Publications Beaupré, S.R. and E.R.M. Druffel, (2009). Time series of marine dissolved organic carbon in the northeast Pacific Ocean, Deep-Sea Research, accepted.
   
  Ziolkowski, L. and E.R.M. Druffel, (2009). Detection of carbon nanotubes using the benzene polycarboxylic acid method, Marine Pollution Bulletin (in press) doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2009.04.018.
   
  Hansman, R. S. Griffin, J. Watson, E. Druffel, A. Ingalls, A. Pearson, and A. Aluwihare, (2009). The radiocarbon signature of microorganisms in the mesopelagic ocean, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science 106, 6513–6518.
   
  Drenzek, Nicholas J., Konrad A. Hughen, Daniel B. Montluçon, John R. Southon, Guaciara M. dos Santos, Ellen R. M. Druffel, Liviu Giosan, and Timothy I. Eglinton (2009), A new look at old carbon in active margin sediments, Geology, 37, 239-242; doi 10.1130/G25351A.1. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/09%20Drenzek%20etal%20Geology.pdf
   
  Druffel, E.R.M. and S. Griffin (2008). Daily variability of dissolved inorganic radiocarbon at three sites in the surface ocean, Marine Chemistry, 110, 185-189. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/08Druffel%20MC.pdf
   
  Druffel, E.R.M., LF. Robinson, S. Griffin, R. Halley, J. Southon and J.F. Adkins (2008). Low reservoir ages for the surface ocean from mid-Holocene Florida corals, Paleoceanography, doi:10.1029/2007PA001527. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/07Druffel%20Paleoceanography.pdf
   
  Druffel, E.R.M., J.E. Bauer, S. Griffin, * S.R. Beaupré, * J. Hwang (2008). Dissolved inorganic radiocarbon in the North Pacific Ocean and Sargasso Sea, Deep-Sea Research I, 55 (4), 451-459. doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2007.12.007 https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/08Druffel%20DSR.pdf
   
  Beaupre, S.R., E.R.M. Druffel and S. Griffin (2007). A low-blank photochemical extraction system for concentration and isotopic analyses of marine dissolved organic carbon, Limnology and Oceanography: Methods, 5, 174-184. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/07Beaupre%20LO_Methods.pdf
   
  K. McDuffee and E.R.M. Druffel, (2007). Daily variability of dissolved inorganic radiocarbon in Sargasso Sea surface water, Marine Chemistry, 106, 513-518. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/07McDuffeeMC.pdf
   
  Druffel, E.R.M., S. Griffin, S. R. Beaupré and R. B. Dunbar (2007) Oceanic climate and circulation changes during the past four centuries from radiocarbon in corals, Geophysical Research Letters, 34, doi:10.1029/2006GL028681. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/07Druffel%20GRL.pdf
   
  Santos, G.M., J.R. Southon, S. Griffin, * S.R. Beaupré and E.R.M. Druffel (2007). Ultra small-mass 14C-AMS sample preparation and analyses at KCCAMS Facility, Nuclear Instrumentation and Methods in Physics Research B, 259, 293-302. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/07Santos%20NIMB.pdf
   
  Hwang, J. and E.R.M. Druffel, (2006) Carbon isotope ratios of organic compound fractions in oceanic suspended particles, Geophysical Research Letters, 33, L23610, doi:10.1029/2006GL027928. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/06Hwang%20GRL.pdf
   
  Hwang, J. and E. R. M. Druffel, Timothy I. Eglinton, and Daniel J. Repeta (2006), Source(s) and cycling of the nonhydrolyzable organic fraction of oceanic particles, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 2006, doi:10.1016/j.gca.2006.07.020. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/06Hwang%20GCA.pdf
   
  Ingalls, Anitra E., Sunita R. Shah, Roberta L. Hansman, Lihini I. Aluwihare, Guaciara M. Santos, Ellen R. M. Druffel, Ann Pearson (2006) Quantifying archaeal community autotrophy in the mesopelagic ocean using natural radiocarbon, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103 (17), 6442-6447. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/06Ingalls%20PNAS.pdf
   
  Hwang, J., E.R.M. Druffel, and J.E. Bauer (2006), Incorporation of aged dissolved organic carbon (DOC) onto oceanic particulate organic carbon (POC): an experimental approach using carbon isotopes, Marine Chemistry, 98, 315-322. https://webfiles.uci.edu/edruffel/DruffelPubs/06Hwang%20MarChem.pdf
   
  Surface Temperature Reconstruction for the Last 2,000 Years (2006), National Research Council, Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate Division on Earth and Life Studies, fermat.nap.edu/catalog/11676.html.
   
Grants NSF, Chemical Oceanography, Earth System History and MRI
   
Jenkins Foundation
   
Professional
Society
AAAS, AGU, ASLO, GSA, TOS, UCS, ACS
   
Other Experience Scientist
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 1981—1993

Visiting Scholar
University of California, Santa Cruz 1987—1988

Research Centers IGPP
   
W. M. Keck Carbon Cycle Acceleratory Mass Spectrometry Laboratory
   
UCI Urban Water Research Center
   
Link to this profile http://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=2027
   
Last updated 02/22/2010