Towards radiocarbon dating of ice cores

Sigl, Michael; Jenk, Theo M.; Kellerhals, Thomas; Szidat, Sönke; Gäggeler, H. W.; Wacker, Lukas; Synal, Hans-Arno; Boutron, Claude F.; Barbante, Carlo; Gabrieli, Jacopo; Schwikowski, Margit

doi:10.3189/002214309790794922

Cited by 55 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 83 publications

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“…4). In summary, we conclude that dating results obtained with the previously used THEODORE combustion set-up Sigl et al, 2009;Herren et al, 2013;Zapf et al, 2013) and the improved coupled Sunset-GIS-AMS system are in good agreement.…”

Section: Recent Optimisation In Oc/ec Separation and Ams Analysissupporting

confidence: 69%

“…In previous ice core dating applications using 14 C of WIOC Sigl et al, 2009;Kellerhals et al, 2010;Herren et al, 2013;Zapf et al, 2013), the OC and EC combustion was performed with the two-step heating system for the EC/OC determination of radiocarbon in the environment (THEODORE), developed for aerosol applications (Szidat et al, 2004b). The combustion was conducted in a stream of oxygen for the controlled separation of OC and EC fractions.…”

Section: Recent Optimisation In Oc/ec Separation and Ams Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Third, OC has a lower probability compared to EC for in-built reservoir ages, e.g. from the burning of old trees or old organic matter (Gavin, 2001;Sigl et al, 2009). Moreover OC is insensitive to potentially insufficiently removed carbonates in mineral-dust-rich layers (e.g.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The methodology of 14 C analysis of the different carbonaceous particle fractions was adopted to study the suitability of WIOC for 14 C dating of old ice, finding that it is of purely biogenic origin prior to industrialisation (Jenk et al, 2006(Jenk et al, , 2007. Since then this novel 14 C approach has been applied for the dating of a number of ice cores from different highaltitude mountain glaciers (Table 1) Sigl et al, 2009;Kellerhals et al, 2010;Herren et al, 2013;Zapf et al, 2013;Aizen et al, 2016). Meanwhile the method has been further optimised and was additionally validated by determining the age of independently dated ice.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Radiocarbon dating of glacier ice: overview, optimisation, validation and potential

et al. 2016

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Abstract. High-altitude glaciers and ice caps from midlatitudes and tropical regions contain valuable signals of past climatic and environmental conditions as well as human activities, but for a meaningful interpretation this information needs to be placed in a precise chronological context. For dating the upper part of ice cores from such sites, several relatively precise methods exist, but they fail in the older and deeper parts, where plastic deformation of the ice results in strong annual layer thinning and a non-linear age-depth relationship. If sufficient organic matter such as plant, wood or insect fragments were found, radiocarbon ( 14 C) analysis would have thus been the only option for a direct and absolute dating of deeper ice core sections. However such fragments are rarely found and, even then, they would not be very likely to occur at the desired depth and resolution. About 10 years ago, a new, complementary dating tool was therefore introduced by our group. It is based on extracting the µg-amounts of the water-insoluble organic carbon (WIOC) fraction of carbonaceous aerosols embedded in the ice matrix for subsequent 14 C dating. Since then this new approach has been improved considerably by reducing the measurement time and improving the overall precision. Samples with ∼ 10 µg WIOC mass can now be dated with reasonable uncertainty of around 10-20 % (variable depending on sample age). This requires about 300 to 800 g of ice for WIOC concentrations typically found in midlatitude and low-latitude glacier ice. Dating polar ice with satisfactory age precision is still not possible since WIOC concentrations are around

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Section: Recent Optimisation In Oc/ec Separation and Ams Analysissupporting

confidence: 69%

Section: Recent Optimisation In Oc/ec Separation and Ams Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Radiocarbon dating of glacier ice: overview, optimisation, validation and potential

et al. 2016

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“…The WIOC fraction of carbonaceous particles in the sample was filtered onto freshly preheated quartz-fibre filters (Pallflex Tissuquartz, 2500QAO-UP), then combusted stepwise (10 min at 340 • C; 12 min at 650 • C) using a thermaloptical carbon analyser (Model4L, Sunset Laboratory Inc., USA) to separate organic carbon (OC) from elemental carbon (EC), and the resulting CO 2 was measured by the Mini Carbon Dating System (MICADAS) with a gas ion source for 14 C analysis at the University of Bern LARA laboratory. Details on sample preparation procedures and analytical methods can be found in previous studies (Jenk et al, 2007Sigl et al, 2009;Uglietti et al, 2016). The overall procedural blanks were estimated using artificial ice blocks of frozen ultra-pure water, which were treated the same way as real ice samples.…”

Section: Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age ranges of the Tibetan ice cores with emphasis on the Chongce ice cores, western Kunlun Mountains

et al. 2018

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Abstract. An accurate chronology is the essential first step for a sound understanding of ice core records. However, dating ice cores drilled from the high-elevation glaciers is challenging and often problematic, leading to great uncertainties. The Guliya ice core, drilled to the bedrock (308.6 m in length) along the western Kunlun Mountains on the northwestern Tibetan Plateau (TP) and widely used as a benchmark for palaeoclimate research, is believed to reach > 500 ka (thousand years) at its bottom. Meanwhile other Tibetan ice cores (i.e. Dasuopu and East Rongbuk in the Himalayas, Puruogangri in the central TP and Dunde in the north-eastern TP) are mostly of Holocene origin. In this study, we drilled four ice cores into bedrock (216.6, 208.6, 135.8 and 133.8 m in length, respectively) from the Chongce ice cap ∼ 30 km to the Guliya ice core drilling site. We took measurements of 14 C, 210 Pb, tritium and β activity for the ice cores, and used these values in a two-parameter flow model to establish the ice core depth-age relationship. We suggested that the Chongce ice cores might be of Holocene origin, consistent with the other Tibetan ice cores except Guliya. The remarkable discrepancy between the Guliya and all the other Tibetan ice core chronology implies that more effort is necessary to explore multiple dating techniques to confirm the age ranges of the TP glaciers, including those from Chongce and Guliya.

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