Exploring the dating of “dirty” speleothems and cave sinters using radiocarbon dating of preserved organic matter

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorBlyth, AJen_AU
dc.contributor.authorHua, Qen_AU
dc.contributor.authorSmith, AMen_AU
dc.contributor.authorFrisia, Sen_AU
dc.contributor.authorBorsato, Aen_AU
dc.contributor.authorHellstrom, JCen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2021-07-30T03:59:17Zen_AU
dc.date.available2021-07-30T03:59:17Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2017-04en_AU
dc.date.statistics2021-07-20en_AU
dc.description.abstractSpeleothems and other carbonate deposits such as tufa containing high proportions of detrital material can be difficult to chemically date due to detrital thorium levels causing a high level of error in conventional U-Th disequilibrium dating. Here we investigate the use of an alternative technique centring on radiocarbon dating of organic matter preserved within the detrital fraction. Non-acid soluble humic, particulate and detritally absorbed organic matter was recovered from eight samples from a flowstone sinter formed within a roman aqueduct at Trento in Italy with a maximum age of 100 CE (1850 cal yr BP), and two repeat samples from a dripstone formed within the 20th Century on a wire fence at Lilly-Pilly Cave, Buchan Caves Reserve in Victoria, Australia. In the aqueduct samples the median calibrated 14C ages ranged from 2232 to 2889 cal yr BP, with 95.4% probability age range in the youngest and oldest samples of 2153–2337 and 2342–3449 cal yr BP respectively. The median age of the more modern dripstone was 336 cal yr BP, with a 95.4% probability age range of 148–486 cal yr BP. These results provide very approximate ball-park estimates of the age of the sample, but are consistently too old when compared to the known maximum ages of formation. It is hypothesised that this offset is due to a combination of the nature of the organic carbon transported from the source organic matter pools, and reworking of both modern and old organic carbon by in situ microbial communities. ©2017 Elsevier B.Ven_AU
dc.identifier.citationBlyth, A. J., Hua, Q., Smith, A., Frisia, S., Borsato, A. & Hellstrom, J. (2017). Exploring the dating of “dirty” speleothems and cave sinters using radiocarbon dating of preserved organic matter. Quaternary Geochronology, 39, 92-98. doi:10.1016/j.quageo.2017.02.002en_AU
dc.identifier.issn1871-1014en_AU
dc.identifier.journaltitleQuaternary Geochronologyen_AU
dc.identifier.pagination92-98en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2017.02.002en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://apo.ansto.gov.au/dspace/handle/10238/11180en_AU
dc.identifier.volume39en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherElsevieren_AU
dc.subjectCavesen_AU
dc.subjectCarbonate rocksen_AU
dc.subjectSintersen_AU
dc.subjectCarbon 14en_AU
dc.subjectOrganic matteren_AU
dc.subjectAustraliaen_AU
dc.subjectVictoriaen_AU
dc.subjectItalyen_AU
dc.titleExploring the dating of “dirty” speleothems and cave sinters using radiocarbon dating of preserved organic matteren_AU
dc.typeJournal Articleen_AU
Files
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.63 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download
Collections
Journal Articles