Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry (IDMS) is increasingly used in research laboratories and has become an essential tool in routine analysis labs (including environmental and clinical applications). This is the first textbook to present a comprehensive and instructive view of the theory and applications of this growing technique.

The first part of this textbook offers a uniform theoretical background, based both on the authors' experience in organic, speciation and elemental analysis and on the current published literature. In the second part, the comprehensive approach to the many applications of IDMS will ensure this text becomes an essential reference for any analytical laboratory. Emerging fields such as quantitative proteomics and metabolic studies are also discussed. Appendices include example spreadsheets for calculating the isotopic composition of molecules and using the Kragten procedure for determining uncertainties.

Postgraduate students and laboratory staff will find this textbook to be a highly accessible guide to isotope dilution analysis, providing the reader with a sound basis to working with this technique. Experienced researchers will benefit from designing experiments with IDMS methodologies in mind. The authors enjoy a strong reputation in the field of analytical chemistry and the reader will be familiar with their previous research.

1 Introduction to Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry (IDMS);2 IDMS Procedures and Calculation Methods; 3 Online Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry; 4 The Use of Multiple Enriched Isotopes for IDMS; 5 The Isotope Composition of Natural-Abundance Elements and Molecules; 6 Selection of Isotopically Enriched Elements and Isotopically Labelled Molecules; 7 The Measurement of the Isotope Composition of the Elements; 8 The Measurement of the Isotope Composition of Molecules by Mass Spectrometry; 9 Traceability in Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry; 10 Uncertainty Evaluation in IDMS; Appendix Definition and Explanation of Symbols Used; Subject Index

Professor Jose Alonso obtained his PhD in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Oviedo in 1985 and subsequently became a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Plymouth before returning to Oviedo in 1987. For five years he was a scientific officer of the European Commission, based in Karlsruhe and in 1995 returned to Oviedo, where he is now Head of Mass Spectrometry and Full Professor of Analytical Chemistry. Professor Alonso's research has yielded over 140 scientific publications and he is a regular invited speaker at conferences. In the commercial sector Professor Alonso is a founding member of a spin-out company dedicated to the commercialisation of isotopically-labelled compounds. During her PhD and Post-doc research, Dr. Mariella Moldovan has worked with platinum group elements analysis and the determination of their environmental pathways and effects. Her current research interests are focused on the development of analytical methods based on the use of stable enriched isotopes and elemental mass spectrometry. Dr Pablo Rodriguez Gonzalez has carried out his PhD and his postdoc in the field of Isotope dilution analysis for speciation and organic analysis. He is the co-author of about 30 publications in international journals on IDMS using different inorganic and organic mass spectrometric techniques. He has written in collaboration with Prof. Garcia Alonso a tutorial review in 2005 which has been already cited 82 times since its publication in 2005.