Accelerator-mass spectrometer (AMS) radiocarbon dating of Pleistocene lake sediments in the Great Basin

Since the development of 14C dating by W.F. Libby in the 1940s and 1950s, the method has proved to be the best absolute method for chronometric dating of organic and some carbon-containing inorganic materials. It has become an essential research tool for both archaeologists and geologists. Even broader application horizons have been opened to radiocarbon dating by use of the accelerator mass spectrometer, which allows routine analysis of submilligram samples. Art curatorship and art conservation directly benefit from this development.There are pronounced similarities between application of radiocarbon dating in archaeology and art research but there are also major differences which make it difficult to simply take a methodology developed for archaeological research and apply it directly to radiocarbon dating of art objects.In both fields the application of dating techniques focuses on dating an object of unknown age or cross-checking the age of an object previously dated by other methods.

Download Full-text

A Simple Method to Separate Pollen for AMS Radiocarbon Dating and its Application to Lacustrine and Marine Sediments

Radiocarbon ◽

10.1017/s0033822200019287 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 41 (1) ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 36

Author(s):

Scott A Mensing ◽

John R Southon

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometry ◽

Lake Sediments ◽

Marine Sediments ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Minimal Cost ◽

Simple Method ◽

Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Sediment Reworking ◽

Scientific Equipment ◽

Ams Dating

We present a simple method for manually separating pollen concentrates for radiocarbon accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dating using a mouth pipetting system. The required equipment is readily available from scientific equipment supply houses at minimal cost. Pollen samples from lake sediments required about 4 h of hand picking, whereas samples from marine sediments required about 8 h labor. Pollen dates from marine sediments were much older than expected. We are attempting to resolve whether this is due to contamination of the pollen or the presence of significant quantities of old reworked pollen. Pollen dates from lake sediments associated with Mazama Ash were consistent with other published ages; however, replicate dates on pollen samples from above the ash were consistently older than the surrounding sediment. Our results suggest that caution must be used when interpreting pollen dates if the potential for sediment reworking is present.

Download Full-text

Radiocarbon Dating User Samples with the BINP Accelerator Mass Spectrometer

Physics of Particles and Nuclei Letters ◽

10.1134/s154747712004038x ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 635-638

Author(s):

S. A. Rastigeev ◽

A. D. Goncharov ◽

V. F. Klyuev ◽

E. S. Konstantinov ◽

V. V. Parkhomchuk ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer

Download Full-text

Dating Tom Ketchum: The Role of Chronometric Determinations in Rock Art Analysis

North American Archaeologist ◽

10.2190/3krr-q0ak-qnth-641l ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 219-247 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Mary M. Farrell ◽

Jeffery F. Burton

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Rock Art ◽

Way Of Life ◽

Social Differences ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer ◽

Art Analysis ◽

Insight Into ◽

Game Animals

Rock art analysis has been used both to provide insight into prehistoric symbolism and ceremony, and to measure prehistoric interaction and communication. But chronological control, essential to distinguishing functional or social differences from temporal differences, has been difficult to establish. No one method of dating has yet proven completely reliable or applicable. Accelerator mass spectrometer radiocarbon dating, at the Tom Ketchum Cave pictograph site in southeastern Arizona, provides one of the first examples of direct independent dating of rock art. The dates suggest the pictographs may have been created during a time when subsistence patterns were shifting from Archaic hunter and gatherer traditions to more agriculture-based subsistence. The Tom Ketchum Cave artists broke from the abstract style more common in the region to represent game animals and hunters, perhaps to ensure success in a disappearing way of life.

Download Full-text

Radiocarbon Dating of Deep-Sea Sediments: A Comparison of Accelerator Mass Spectrometer and Beta-Decay Methods

Radiocarbon ◽

10.1017/s0033822200044763 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 31 (2) ◽

pp. 105-116 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

G A Jones ◽

A J T Jull ◽

T W Linick ◽

D J Donahue

Keyword(s):

Beta Decay ◽

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Deep Sea ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Analysis Time ◽

Basic Principles ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer ◽

Deep Sea Sediments

Radiocarbon dating (Libby, 1955) has been an important tool in the marine sciences since the early 1950s (eg, Arrhenius, Kjellberg & Libby, 1951; Ericson et al, 1956; Broecker, Ewing & Heezen, 1960; Emery & Bray, 1962) and the basic principles and analytic procedures of the method have changed little. In the late 1970s, the Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS) method of 14C dating was developed (Bennett et al, 1977, 1978), the major advantages being that samples several thousand times smaller than needed for beta-decay counting can be dated, and analysis time is reduced to ca 1 hr from the 1–6 days needed for beta-decay methods.

Download Full-text

Radiocarbon Dating at Groningen: New and Updated Chemical Pretreatment Procedures

Radiocarbon ◽

10.1017/rdc.2019.101 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 62 (1) ◽

pp. 63-74 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

M W Dee ◽

S W L Palstra ◽

A Th Aerts-Bijma ◽

M O Bleeker ◽

S de Bruijn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Uncertainty Propagation ◽

Chemical Pretreatment ◽

Chemical Preparation ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer ◽

Quality Checks ◽

Practical Information ◽

The University ◽

Routine Procedures

ABSTRACTThe Centre for Isotope Research (CIO) at the University of Groningen has operated a radiocarbon (14C) dating laboratory for almost 70 years. In 2017, the CIO received a major upgrade, which involved the relocation of the laboratory to new purpose-built premises, and the installation of a MICADAS accelerator mass spectrometer. This period of transition provides an opportunity to update the laboratory’s routine procedures. This article addresses all of the processes and quality checks the CIO has in place for registering, tracking and pretreating samples for radiocarbon dating. Complementary updates relating to radioisotope measurement and uncertainty propagation will be provided in other forthcoming publications. Here, the intention is to relay all the practical information regarding the chemical preparation of samples, and to provide a concise explanation as to why each step is deemed necessary.

Download Full-text

14C AMS at Suerc: Improving QA Data with the 5MV Tandem and 250KV SSAMS

Radiocarbon ◽

10.1017/s003382220004529x ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 52 (2) ◽

pp. 263-271 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

P Naysmith ◽

G T Cook ◽

S P H T Freeman ◽

E M Scott ◽

R Anderson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Assurance ◽

Sample Preparation ◽

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Random Access ◽

Capacity Measurement ◽

Tandem Accelerator ◽

Standard Data ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer ◽

On Line ◽

Automated Data Acquisition

In 2003, a National Electrostatics Corporation (NEC) 5MV tandem accelerator mass spectrometer was installed at SUERC, providing the radiocarbon laboratory with 14C measurements to 4–5‰ repeatability. In 2007, a 250kV single-stage accelerator mass spectrometer (SSAMS) was added to provide additional 14C capability and is now the preferred system for 14C analysis. Changes to the technology and to our operations are evident in our copious quality assurance data: typically, we now use the 134-position MC-SNICS source, which is filled to capacity. Measurement of standards shows that spectrometer running without the complication of on-line δ13C evaluation is a good operational compromise. Currently, 3‰ 14C/13C measurements are routinely achieved for samples up to nearly 3 half-lives old by consistent sample preparation and an automated data acquisition algorithm with sample random access for measurement repeats. Background and known-age standard data are presented for the period 2003–2008 for the 5MV system and 2007–2008 for the SSAMS, to demonstrate the improvements in data quality.

Download Full-text

Operation experience of the BINP accelerator mass spectrometer

10.1063/1.5083733 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

S. Rastigeev ◽

A. Frolov ◽

A. Goncharov ◽

V. Klyuev ◽

E. Konstantinov ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometer ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometer

Download Full-text

AMS Radiocarbon Dating of the Type Plainview and Firstview (Paleoindian) Assemblages: The Agony and the Ecstasy

American Antiquity ◽

10.2307/2694144 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 64 (3) ◽

pp. 444-454 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Vance T. Holliday ◽

Eileen Johnson ◽

Thomas W. Stafford

Keyword(s):

Amino Acids ◽

Great Plains ◽

Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Southern Plains ◽

Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽

Tight Cluster ◽

Bison Antiquus

Plainview and Firstview are two of the principal post-Folsom Paleoindian artifact assemblages on the Great Plains, but good radiometric age control for these artifact styles is relatively poor, due in part to lack of reliable age control on the type collections. This study reports the results of AMS-radiocarbon dating of specific amino acids from Bison antiquus bone associated with the type Plainview and Firstview assemblages from the Plainview and Olsen-Chubbuck sites, respectively. Seven samples of bone and teeth from Plainview produced a surprisingly wide array of ages. As a result, the age of the bone bed and the type Plainview collection remain uncertain, but it is most likely ≥ 10,000 B.P. (but late or post-Folsom) given the dating and stratigraphic relationships at Plainview and other sites. Seven samples of bone from Olsen-Chubbuck yielded a tight cluster of ages averaging ca 9400 B.P., fitting well with other dated Firstview features on the Southern Plains. These results show that much better age control from more sites is needed in order to understand the Paleoindian record. AMS-radiocarbon dating of specific amino acids from bone has revolutionized such issues of chronology in archaeology, but like any other method, it can provide confusing results and must be used in conjunction with other chronometric data.

Download Full-text