Kim invited me to join her in the lab to prepare for the field. She said: "it's pretty boring, but it has to be done!"
Sealing Samples for the Long Term
The gas samples already taken are in sealed vials, but there is this remarkably flexible wax tape (parafilm) that needs to be wrapped around the stoppers, just to make sure no gas escapes. These are 10 ml vials holding 25 ml of gas!
http://youtu.be/lV_MWje8yh0
Preparing Vials for Collection
10 ml gas vials need to be sealed with with a rubber stopper, then the air trapped inside is taken out with a syringe.
First you need to insert the rubber stoppers into the vials. This is harder than it looks, as it is such a tight fit! Then you have to take out the air that is trapped inside the vial. The needle sticks right through the stopper, and you pull out the air using the syringe.
http://youtu.be/O9Vw8yPY3PQ
Hey presto, a vial with a vacuum ready for a gas sample to be injected into it.
Field Day Bonus:
This is only a bonus because it did not happen to me today. I know my turn is coming! When we take soil samples, we abandon the boardwalks for the wetland itself…
http://youtu.be/Y4GQoRoUlzY