EERTIS Institute of Speleology "Emil Racoviță"
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Institute of Speleology Emil Racoviță of the Romanian Academy
Biospeleology Laboratory
The laboratory is part of the ‘Emil Racoviță’ Institute of Speleology and is equipped for conducting complex studies on cave micro‑ and macrofauna, ranging from taxonomy to phylogeny.
It has facilities for multidisciplinary studies on biodiversity, human impact, protection and conservation of caves, including their development for tourism purposes.
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Hydrogeochemistry Laboratory
The laboratory conducts complex studies and investigations of aquifer systems, both in their natural state and under the impact of anthropogenic activities: geochemical characterisation of thermal aquifers, thermodynamic and kinetic modelling of hydrogeochemical processes, investigation of hazardous element transfer in natural environments.
Equipped with high-quality, fully computerised instruments: ICP-MS, AAS (flame and electrothermal atomisation), luminescence spectrometry, UV-Vis spectrophotometry and electrometrics, with clean rooms for sample preparation under high-purity conditions.
Physical Speleology and Palaeontology Department
The department focuses on the study of cave geology and palaeontology, with emphasis on cave deposits as palaeoclimatic archives and the palaeontology of vertebrates from cave and surface sites.
Activities include monitoring physico-chemical parameters in cave air and water, stable isotope analysis of water, and U-series dating in collaboration with partner laboratories.
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Closani Research Station
The Closani Research Station is used as a base for speleological research in the South-Western Carpathians. It can accommodate 10 researchers in 2 dormitories and has all the facilities needed for laboratory activities, workshops and meetings.
The station hosts an automatic Vaisala meteorological station and has been a registered GNIP station since 2018. The nearby Closani Cave Laboratory is used for subterranean experiments.
Closani Cave Laboratory
The Closani Cave Laboratory, part of the Closani Field Station, is used as a subterranean laboratory for the study of calcite precipitation and dissolution processes under natural conditions and for cave microclimate monitoring.
It is also used for biospeleological studies and experiments requiring total darkness.
Quaternary Palaeoclimate Research Group
The group provides fundamental research services across a wide range of speleological and palaeoclimatic studies: U/Th and 210Pb dating on carbonate and sediment samples, micro-sampling for stable isotope analysis, water isotope measurements (δ¹⁸O, δD) and palaeontological studies of Quaternary mammals.
While approaching climate change from a past perspective, the group also studies and monitors present-day cave microclimates, applying its expertise to applied topics such as tourist cave management and general cave protection.
Palaeontology Laboratory
The laboratory specializes in Quaternary vertebrate paleontology, with particular expertise in small mammals and large carnivores from this period. The team conducts paleontological and archaeological excavations and hosts the paleontological collection of the ‘Emil Racoviță’ Institute of Speleology.
Stable Isotope Laboratory
The laboratory uses a CRDS Picarro L2130-i analyser for measuring δ¹⁸O and δD in precipitation and groundwater, contributing to the institute's hydrological and palaeoclimatic studies.
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