From radiometry to chronology of a marine sediment core: A 210Pb dating interlaboratory comparison exercise organised by the IAEA

Garcia-Tenorio R 1 , Rozmaric M 2 , Harms A 3 , Godoy JMO 4 , Barsanti M 5 , Schirone A 6 Show all authors , Ruiz-Fernández AC 7 , Sanchez-Cabeza JA 7 , McGinnity P 2 , Fujak M 2 , Eriksson M 8 , Hatje V 9 , Laissaoui A 10 , Nguyen HQ 11 , Okuku E 12 , Al-Rousan SA 13 , Yii MW 14 , Heijnis H 15 , Osvath I 2

Affiliations 

  • 1 Centro Nacional de Aceleradores, Universidad de Sevilla-J. Andalucía-CSIC, Seville, Spain
  • 2 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Environment Laboratories, Monaco
  • 3 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Environment Laboratories, Monaco; Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO), Vienna, Austria(1)
  • 4 Pontifica Universidade Catolica do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • 5 ENEA, Marine Environment Research Centre S. Teresa, La Spezia, Italy. Electronic address: mattia.barsanti@enea.it
  • 6 ENEA, Marine Environment Research Centre S. Teresa, La Spezia, Italy
  • 7 Unidad Académica Mazatlán, Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mazatlán, Mexico
  • 8 Swedish Radiation Safety Authority, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
  • 9 Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente & Instituto de Química (CIENAM), Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Brazil
  • 10 Centre National de l'Energie, des Sciences et des Techniques Nucléaires (CNESTEN), Rabat, Morocco
  • 11 Viet Nam Atomic Energy Institute (VINATOM), Viet Nam
  • 12 Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), Mombasa, Kenya
  • 13 Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan
  • 14 Malaysian Nuclear Agency, Malaysia
  • 15 Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO), Australia
Mar Pollut Bull, 2020 Oct;159:111490.
PMID: 32738641 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111490

Abstract

Laboratories from 14 countries (with different levels of expertise in radionuclide measurements and 210Pb dating) participated in an interlaboratory comparison exercise (ILC) related to the application of 210Pb sediment dating technique within the framework of the IAEA Coordinated Research Project. The laboratories were provided with samples from a composite sediment core and were required to provide massic activities of several radionuclides and an age versus depth model from the obtained results, using the most suitable 210Pb dating model. Massic concentrations of Zn and Cu were also determined to be used for chronology validation. The ILC results indicated good analytical performances while the dating results didn't demonstrate the same degree of competence in part due to the different experience in dating of the participant laboratories. The ILC exercise enabled evaluation of the difficulties faced by laboratories implementing 210Pb dating methods and identified some limitations in providing reliable chronologies.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

MeSH terms
Similar publications