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Organic Matter Spectroscopy Lab

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.

Diane McKnight
Director

Lane Allen
PhD student

Natalie Aranda
Grad student

Jared Collins
Grad student

Lauren Magliozzi
Grad student

Mia Vanderwilt
Grad student

Alumni

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

Diane McKnight

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 in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica

Josh Darling kneels to sample algal mats from a rocky meltwater stream near Canada Glacier in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica

Researcher in shorts and a backpack stands on the grassy shore of an alpine lake within a rocky catchment

Researcher on the grassy shoreline of an alpine lake in the Rocky Mountains.

News

Rare Earth Water (The Poetry of Science)

An original poem and science podcast episode of The Poetry of Science, by Sam Illingworth, inspired by Garrett Rue and Diane McKnight's new paper reporting on climate change as a driver of acid rock drainage and rare earth element contamination of the Snake River, Colorado. Read more

Students involved in Diane McKnight's ongoing research on water quality in the Snake River collect tracer samples along a tributary.

Rare earth elements and old mines spell trouble for Western water supplies

Acid rock and mine drainage into Western streams is a problem. Climate change is making it worse. Read more

More institute news for the Organic Matter Spectroscopy Lab

Publications

Publications for McKnight are shown below

Click to view publications

Life in Antarctic Deserts and other Cold Dry Environments

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Doran PT; Lyons WB; McKnight DM

Publication Date: 2010-04-29
Type: Book

Physiochemical properties influencing biomass abundance and primary production in Lake Hoare, Antarctica

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Herbei R; Lyons WB; Laybourn-Parry J; Gardner C; Priscu JC; McKnight DM

Published in: Ecological Modelling
Publication Date: 2010-04-24
Type: Journal Article

Comparison of seasonal changes in fluorescent dissolved organic matter among aquatic lake and stream sites in the Green Lakes Valley

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Miller MP; McKnight DM

Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
Publication Date: 2010-03-23
Type: Journal Article

Photochemistry of dissolved organic material and its role in aquatic ecosystems

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: McKnight DM

Published in: ACS National Meeting Book of Abstracts
Publication Date: 2010-03-21
Type: Journal Article

Influence of organic-matter fractionation by natural iron nanoparticles on copper speciation and aquatic copper toxicity

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Smith KS; Ranville JF; Diedrich DJ; McKnight DM; Sofield RM

Published in: ACS National Meeting Book of Abstracts
Publication Date: 2010-03-21
Type: Journal Article

Effect of instrument-specific response on the analysis of fulvic acid fluorescence spectra

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Cory RM; Miller MP; McKnight DM; Guerard JJ; Miller PL

Published in: Limnology and Oceanography: Methods
Publication Date: 2010-02-01
Type: Journal Article

Effect of unsteady flow on nitrate loss in an oligotrophic, glacial meltwater stream

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Koch JC; McKnight DM; Baeseman JL

Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
Publication Date: 2010-01-08
Type: Journal Article

Effects of Short-Term Drying and Irrigation on Electron Flow in Mesocosms of a Northern Bog and an Alpine Fen

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Deppe M; McKnight DM; Blodau C

Published in: Environmental Science and Technology (Washington)
Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Journal Article

Diatoms as indicators of environmental change in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic freshwaters

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie; Spaulding, Sarah A

All Authors: Spaulding SA; MCKNIGHT DM; Stanish L; Van de Vijver B; Hodgson D

Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Chapter

Dissolved Organic Matter Sources and Consequences for Iron and Arsenic Mobilization in Bangladesh Aquifers

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie; Bilinski, Teresa

All Authors:

Mladenov N; Zheng Y; Miller MP; Nemergut DR; Legg T; Simone B; Hageman C; Rahman MM; Ahmed KM; McKnight DM...

Mladenov N
Zheng Y
Miller MP
Nemergut DR
Legg T
Simone B
Hageman C
Rahman MM
Ahmed KM
McKnight DM

Published in: Environmental Science and Technology (Washington)
Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Journal Article

Analogue stream hydrologic and ecosystem functions

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Gooseff MN; MCKNIGHT DM; Carr MH; Baeseman JL

Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Chapter

Effect of instrument-specific response on the analysis of fulvic acid fluorescence spectra

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Cory RM; Miller MP; McKnight DM; Guerard JJ; Miller PL

Published in: Limnology and Oceanography: Methods
Publication Date: 2010-01-01
Type: Journal Article

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN INVERTEBRATE HABITAT PREFERENCE, STREAM FLOW AND DIEL TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATION IN AN ANTARCTIC MELTWATER STREAM.

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Simmons BL; Adams BJ; McKnight DM; Wall DH

Published in: Journal of Nematology
Publication Date: 2009-12-01
Type: Journal Article

A model of degradation and production of three pools of dissolved organic matter in an alpine lake

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Miller MP; McKnight DM; Chapra SC; Williams MW

Published in: Limnology and Oceanography
Publication Date: 2009-11-01
Type: Journal Article

Lakes and reservoirs as regulators of carbon cycling and climate

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors:

Tranvik LJ; Downing JA; Cotner JB; Loiselle SA; Striegl RG; Ballatore TJ; Dillon P; Finlay K; Fortino K; Knoll LB...

Tranvik LJ
Downing JA
Cotner JB
Loiselle SA
Striegl RG
Ballatore TJ
Dillon P
Finlay K
Fortino K
Knoll LB

Published in: Limnology and Oceanography
Publication Date: 2009-11-01
Type: Journal Article

Alpine lake optical properties as sentinels of dust deposition and global change

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Mladenov N; Lopez-Ramos J; McKnight DM; Reche I

Published in: Limnology and Oceanography
Publication Date: 2009-11-01
Type: Journal Article

Characterizing chlorine oxidation of dissolved organic matter and disinfection by-product formation with fluorescence spectroscopy and parallel factor analysis

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie; Summers, R Scott

All Authors: Beggs KMH; Summers RS; McKnight DM

Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
Publication Date: 2009-10-08
Type: Journal Article

Factors controlling streambed coverage of Didymosphenia geminata in two regulated streams in the Colorado Front Range

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Miller MP; McKnight DM; Cullis JD; Greene A; Vietti K; Liptzin D

Published in: Hydrobiologia: the international journal on limnology and marine sciences
Publication Date: 2009-09-01
Type: Journal Article

Life in the ice cover and underlying cold brines of Lake Vida, Antarctica

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Murray AE; Fritsen CH; Kenig F; McKay CM; McKnight DM; Cawley K; Doran PT

Published in: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
Publication Date: 2009-06-01
Type: Journal Article

Production of microbially-derived fulvic acid from photolysis of quinone-containing extracellular products of phytoplankton

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Miller MP; McKnight DM; Chapra SC

Published in: Aquatic Sciences: research across boundaries
Publication Date: 2009-06-01
Type: Journal Article

Response of the Phytoplankton Community in an Alpine Lake to Drought Conditions: Colorado Rocky Mountain Front Range, USA

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Flanagan CM; McKnight DM; Liptzin D; Williams MW; Miller MP

Published in: Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research
Publication Date: 2009-05-01
Type: Journal Article

Spatial and temporal variations in DOM composition in ecosystems: The importance of long-term monitoring of optical properties

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Jaffe R; McKnight D; Maie N; Cory R; McDowell WH; Campbell JL

Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
Publication Date: 2008-12-19
Type: Journal Article

Inland diatoms from the McMurdo Dry Valleys and James Ross Island, Antarctica

CU Boulder Authors: Lubinski, David J; Spaulding, Sarah A; McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Esposito RMM; Spaulding SA; McKnight DM; de Vijver BV; Kopalova K; Lubinski D; Hall B; Whittaker T

Published in: Botany
Publication Date: 2008-12-01
Type: Journal Article

Hydrologic response to extreme warm and cold summers in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, East Antarctica

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie

All Authors: Doran PT; McKay CP; Fountain AG; Nylen T; Mcknight DM; Jaros C; Barrett JE

Published in: Antarctic Science
Publication Date: 2008-10-01
Type: Journal Article

High-latitude rivers and streams

CU Boulder Authors: McKnight, Diane Marie; Gooseff, Mike

All Authors: McKnight DM; Gooseff MN; Vincent WF; Peterson BJ

Publication Date: 2008-09-11
Type: Chapter

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Breadcrumb

Organic Matter Spectroscopy Lab

Breadcrumb

Organic Matter Spectroscopy Lab

Contact & services

News

Publications

Life in Antarctic Deserts and other Cold Dry Environments

Photochemistry of dissolved organic material and its role in aquatic ecosystems

Influence of organic-matter fractionation by natural iron nanoparticles on copper speciation and aquatic copper toxicity

Effect of instrument-specific response on the analysis of fulvic acid fluorescence spectra

Diatoms as indicators of environmental change in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic freshwaters

Analogue stream hydrologic and ecosystem functions

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN INVERTEBRATE HABITAT PREFERENCE, STREAM FLOW AND DIEL TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATION IN AN ANTARCTIC MELTWATER STREAM.

Life in the ice cover and underlying cold brines of Lake Vida, Antarctica

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