Breadcrumb
Organic Matter Spectroscopy Lab
Breadcrumb
Image: Boulder Reservoir by Richard Saxon
We measure the amount and character of dissolved organic matter from diverse ecosystems, especially aquatic ones. We often combine our lab data with field-scale experiments and modeling to understand of the interactions between hydrologic, chemical and biological processes in controlling the dynamics of these systems.
- Nayoung Hur, MS 2022
- Garrett Rue, PhD 2019
- Alia Lauren Khan, NSF Graduate Research Fellow
- Maggie Burns, MA 2014 in Geography; now Hydrologist
- Rachel Gabor, PhD 2013 in Environmental Studies
- Jessica Ebert, MS 2012
Contact & services
Major equipment includes
- Shimadzu TOC analyzer
- Antec 9000 DON analyzer
- Agilent 8453 spectrophotometer
- FluroMax2 fluorometer
- fractionation columns
- Ulter-filtration
Josh Darling kneels to sample algal mats from a rocky meltwater stream near Canada Glacier in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica
Researcher on the grassy shoreline of an alpine lake in the Rocky Mountains.
Publications
Publications for McKnight are shown below
Comparing Properties Affecting Transport, Fate, Effects, and Response
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
McKnight D; Friedman D
Publication Date: 2016-01-01Type: Chapter
Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines A Comparative Study of Environmental Fate, Effects, and Response Introduction
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
McKnight D; Friedman D
Publication Date: 2016-01-01Type: Chapter
Spills of Diluted Bitumen from Pipelines A Comparative Study of Environmental Fate, Effects, and Response Preface
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
McKnight D; Friedman D
Publication Date: 2016-01-01Type: Chapter
Ancient low-molecular-weight organic acids in permafrost fuel rapid carbon dioxide production upon thaw
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Drake TW; Wickland KP; Spencer RGM; McKnight DM; Striegl RG
Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USAPublication Date: 2015-11-10
Type: Journal Article
An overview of research from a high elevation landscape: the Niwot Ridge, Colorado Long Term Ecological Research programme
All Authors:
Williams MW; Seastedt TR; Bowman WD; McKnight DM; Suding KN
Published in: Plant Ecology and DiversityPublication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
A slide down a slippery slope - alpine ecosystem responses to nitrogen deposition
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Bowman, Bill
All Authors:
Bowman WD; Nemergut DR; McKnight DM; Miller MP; Williams MW
Published in: Plant Ecology and DiversityPublication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Children's book series and associated curricula support elementary education and outreach in water resources
CU Boulder Authors:
Ray, Chris; McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Ray C; McKnight DM; Bidwell MD; Fourment T; Pritz CF; Rinehart AH
Published in: Plant Ecology and DiversityPublication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Limnology of the Green Lakes Valley: phytoplankton ecology and dissolved organic matter biogeochemistry at a long-term ecological research site
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Miller MP; McKnight DM
Published in: Plant Ecology and DiversityPublication Date: 2015-11-02
Type: Journal Article
Antarctic streams as a potential source of iron for the Southern Ocean
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Welch, Kathleen Ann
All Authors:
Lyons WB; Dailey KR; Welch KA; Deuerling KM; Welch SA; McKnight DM
Published in: Geology (Boulder)Publication Date: 2015-11-01
Type: Journal Article
Dissolved Organic Matter Quality in a Shallow Aquifer of Bangladesh: Implications for Arsenic Mobility
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Bilinski, Teresa
All Authors:
Published in: Environmental Science and Technology (Washington)Mladenov N; Zheng Y; Simone B; Bilinski TM; McKnight DM; Nemergut D; Radloff KA; Rahman MM; Ahmed KM...
- Mladenov N
- Zheng Y
- Simone B
- Bilinski TM
- McKnight DM
- Nemergut D
- Radloff KA
- Rahman MM
- Ahmed KM
Publication Date: 2015-09-15
Type: Journal Article
The river as a chemostat: fresh perspectives on dissolved organic matter flowing down the river continuum
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Published in: Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic SciencesCreed IF; McKnight DM; Pellerin BA; Green MB; Bergamaschi BA; Aiken GR; Burns DA; Findlay SEG; Shanley JB; Striegl RG...
- Creed IF
- McKnight DM
- Pellerin BA
- Green MB
- Bergamaschi BA
- Aiken GR
- Burns DA
- Findlay SEG
- Shanley JB
- Striegl RG
Publication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Recovery of Antarctic stream epilithon from simulated scouring events
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Gooseff, Michael N
All Authors:
Kohler TJ; Chatfield E; Gooseff MN; Barrett JE; Mcknight DM
Published in: Antarctic SciencePublication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Potential for real-time understanding of coupled hydrologic and biogeochemical processes in stream ecosystems: Future integration of telemetered data with process models for glacial meltwater streams
All Authors:
Published in: Water Resources ResearchMcKnight DM; Cozzetto K; Cullis JDS; Gooseff MN; Jaros C; Koch JC; Lyons WB; Neupauer R; Wlostowski A...
- McKnight DM
- Cozzetto K
- Cullis JDS
- Gooseff MN
- Jaros C
- Koch JC
- Lyons WB
- Neupauer R
- Wlostowski A
Publication Date: 2015-08-01
Type: Journal Article
Hydrodynamic control of benthic mats of Didymosphenia geminata at the reach scale
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Spaulding, Sarah A
All Authors:
Cullis JDS; McKnight DM; Spaulding SA
Published in: Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic SciencesPublication Date: 2015-06-01
Type: Journal Article
Pressure-driven, shoreline currents in a perennially ice-covered, pro-glacial lake in Antarctica, identified from a LiCl tracer injected into a pro-glacial stream
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; Welch, Kathleen Ann
All Authors:
Castendyk D; McKnight D; Welch K; Niebuhr S; Jaros C
Published in: Hydrological ProcessesPublication Date: 2015-04-30
Type: Journal Article
Influence of Leaching Solution and Catchment Location on the Fluorescence of Water-Soluble Organic Matter
CU Boulder Authors:
Barnard, Holly Rene; McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Gabor RS; Burns MA; Lee RH; Elg JB; Kemper CJ; Barnard HR; McKnight DM
Published in: Environmental Science and Technology (Washington)Publication Date: 2015-04-07
Type: Journal Article
Transformations in autochthonous DOM: An Antarctic supraglacial case study
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie; SanClements, Michael
All Authors:
Smith H; Wei-Haas M; SanClements M; D'Andrilli J; Foreman C; Chin Y-P; McKnight D
Published in: ACS National Meeting Book of AbstractsPublication Date: 2015-03-22
Type: Conference Proceeding
Life in the Main Channel: Long-Term Hydrologic Control of Microbial Mat Abundance in McMurdo Dry Valley Streams, Antarctica
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Kohler TJ; Stanish LF; Crisp SW; Koch JC; Liptzin D; Baeseman JL; McKnight DM
Published in: EcosystemsPublication Date: 2015-03-01
Type: Journal Article
Fractionation of Fulvic Acid by Iron and Aluminum Oxides-Influence on Copper Toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Smith KS; Ranville JF; Lesher EK; Diedrich DJ; McKnight DM; Sofield RM
Published in: Environmental Science and Technology (Washington)Publication Date: 2014-10-21
Type: Journal Article
Abiotic and biotic factors influencing the mobility of arsenic in groundwater of a through-flow island in the Okavango Delta, Botswana
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Published in: Journal of HydrologyMladenov N; Wolski P; Hettiarachchi GM; Murray-Hudson M; Enriquez H; Damaraju S; Galkaduwa MB; McKnight DM; Masamba W...
- Mladenov N
- Wolski P
- Hettiarachchi GM
- Murray-Hudson M
- Enriquez H
- Damaraju S
- Galkaduwa MB
- McKnight DM
- Masamba W
Publication Date: 2014-10-10
Type: Journal Article
Morning, noon, and night: DOM photochemistry and understanding the biogeochemical pulse of river ecosystems
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
McKnight D
Published in: ACS National Meeting Book of AbstractsPublication Date: 2014-08-10
Type: Conference Proceeding
From the litter layer to the saprolite: Chemical changes in water-soluble soil organic matter and their correlation to microbial community composition
All Authors:
Gabor RS; Eilers K; McKnight DM; Fierer N; Anderson SP
Published in: Soil Biology and BiochemistryPublication Date: 2014-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Fluorescence Indices and Their Interpretation
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Gabor RS; Baker A; McKnight DM; Miller MP
Publication Date: 2014-01-01Type: Chapter
Diel flow pulses drive particulate organic matter transport from microbial mats in a glacial meltwater stream in the McMurdo Dry Valleys
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
Cullis JDS; Stanish LF; McKnight DM
Published in: Water Resources ResearchPublication Date: 2014-01-01
Type: Journal Article
Characterization of IHSS Pony Lake fulvic acid dissolved organic matter by electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry and fluorescence spectroscopy
CU Boulder Authors:
McKnight, Diane Marie
All Authors:
D'Andrilli J; Foreman CM; Marshall AG; McKnight DM
Published in: Organic GeochemistryPublication Date: 2013-12-01
Type: Journal Article
