What is it about?
In this study, we determined the radiocarbon ages of leaf wax biomarkers (long-chain n-alkanes) extracted from the LPS Kurtak in central Siberia. The chronology is in good agreement with independent age control based on stratigraphy, infrared stimulated luminescence dating, and radiocarbon dating on charcoal and macrofossils.
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Why is it important?
Our results corroborate the stratigraphic integrity of leaf waxes, and highlight their potential for dating loess-paleosol sequences back to 40'000 years.
Perspectives
We radiocarbon dated the leaf waxes as a whole compound class, which was relatively quick and straightforward, because only a single clean-up procedure was involved. Compound-specific radiocarbon analyses (CSRA) on the other hand are very time-consuming and require specialized instrumentation, such as a gas chromatograph with fraction collector. However, CSRA assures a better source control and might be the better option depending on the research question.
Mischa Haas
Eawag
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Radiocarbon Dating of Leaf Waxes in the Loess-Paleosol Sequence Kurtak, Central Siberia, Radiocarbon, February 2017, Cambridge University Press,
DOI: 10.1017/rdc.2017.1.
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