Can tree-ring chemistry reveal absolute dates for past volcanic eruptions?

Pearson, Charlotte; Manning, Sturt W.; Coleman, Max; Jarvis, Kym E.

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2005.03.007

Cited by 57 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 86 publications

(104 reference statements)

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“…Multiple options exist for trimming the surface from cores. Regular sanding could remove the surface, but sanding should be avoided in dendrochemical studies because it spreads dust of all rings across all parts of the sanded core (Pearson et al 2005). Trimming with razor blades would also work, but razors could potentially contaminate the inner-core of samples with their own constituents, for example with iron, chromium, and nickel in the case of stainless steel blades.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laser Trimming Tree-Ring Cores for Dendrochemistry of Metals

Sheppard

Witten

2005

Tree-Ring Research

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This article discusses the application of laser to trim the outer surface from tree-ring increment cores in preparation for dendrochemistry of certain metals. A source of contamination specific to dendrochemistry of metals is metal constituents, such as iron, tungsten, chromium, nickel, and cobalt, coming off tools used to collect and process cores and adhering to the sample surface. One method to eliminate this contamination is to trim off the outer surface of cores using laser. To test this application of laser, three tree-ring increment cores were collected from each of three trees. For each tree, one core was trimmed using a CO 2 laser, one core was trimmed using a stainless steel razor blade, and one core was left untrimmed. The resultant cores were measured for metals using acid dissolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy. Trimmed cores had on average one-third the content of iron, tungsten, and chromium than that of untrimmed cores. Laser-trimmed cores had less of these metals than razor-trimmed cores. Razor-trimmed cores also had measurable nickel, but laser-trimmed cores had no nickel. Laser trimming is an ideal solution to potential contamination of cores with metals from increment borers without imparting other contamination from tools such as razor blades.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laser Trimming Tree-Ring Cores for Dendrochemistry of Metals

Sheppard

Witten

2005

Tree-Ring Research

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“…The cutting technique prevents production of wood dust, limits crushing of cell structure during laser rastering (Pearson et al, 2005) and reduces any contamination effect from the tree borer. At the same time it generates a flat surface that limits signal disturbances associated with irregular ablation penetration of ragged surfaces.…”

Section: Fig 4 Comparison Of Coefficient Of Variation (Cv) Values Fmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An important advantage of these microprobebased methods for dendrochemistry is the relatively small amount of material required for analysis in comparison with wood digestion methods, which makes them ideal for analyzing tree rings and producing annually-toseasonally resolved chemical records. On the other hand, because the sampled area of each tree ring is relatively small, issues related to the heterogeneity of tree rings can be amplified (compare Pearson et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During sanding, displaced wood particles may infill the lumina of vessels and tracheids on the core surface. The resulting contamination can affect not only the surface wood, but also the deeper parts of the prepared wood sample, depending on the size and length (depth) of the lumina (Pearson et al, 2005). Some studies have taken the additional step to wash sanded cores in 10% trace HNO 3 followed by rinsing in double distilled water before analysis (Watmough et al, 1997); there is, however, a chance for element leakage during this process.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Some considerations in the reconstruction of lead levels using laser ablation: lessons from the design stage of dendrochemistry study, St.John's, Canada

2015

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Study of soils in St. John's, Canada showed elevated Pb levels representing a potential exposure risk for young children. Old trees growing in the city present a potential annually-resolved record of Pb levels over past centuries that provides important temporal and spatial dimensions to Pb exposure risk assessment. This paper reports the results of our analytical tests to develop a fast, reliable and cost-efficient method using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) for measuring Pb concentration in annual tree rings from available tree species. Our tests focused on approaches to sample preparation as they affect the laser ablation process, the relative merits of the ablation sampling method, and the response of our available tree species, which have contrasting wood structures, to laser ablation. The range of annual Pb concentrations (ppm) measured for each of the study species were as follows: spruce (0.18-6.42); elm (0.12-7.91); and horse chestnut (0.40-14.09). Our results demonstrate that the cutting procedure for preparing tree cores produced the most consistent Pb concentrations of the three methods, although they each displayed problematic anomalies. The selection of the best laser ablation technique appears to be highly dependent on study species and goals. In general, spot analysis permits detailed and targeted studies of tree-ring structures, but requires careful sampling attention for species with complex wood anatomy. The line scan method is ideal for reconstructing annually resolved element concentrations from trees and to some degree mitigates the complicating issue of intra-ring variability. Horse chestnut was determined to be the best of the available tree species because it exhibited a good response to laser ablation and produced the lowest intra-ring variations in Pb concentration.

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“…Tephra studies are increasingly important components of Quaternary research and provide a unique means to address palaeoenvironmental and archaeological chronologies (Lowe, 2011;Lowe and Alloway 2014). The precise relationship between key volcanic eruptions and the archaeological and environmental record can be highly problematic, however, even for heavily studied volcanic events such as the Bronze Age eruption of Santorini/Thera (e.g., Manning, 1999;Pearson et al, 2005;Friedrich et al, 2006;Manning et al, 2006). For lesser studied contexts, such as those of Central America, the challenges are compounded.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The cultural nature of tephra: ‘Problematic’ ecofacts and artifacts and the Barú volcano, Panamá

Holmberg

2016

Quaternary International

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a b s t r a c tThis paper presents data from archaeological stratigraphy and lacustrine core samples containing tephra from the Barú volcano in western Panama. The discussion seeks to refine the understanding of medial tephra deposits near Barú in relation to the eruption history indicated by geological, palaeoecological, and archaeological data. A primary goal of this fieldwork is the identification and correlation of tephra from major Barú eruptions encountered in archaeological contexts by their lithology, stratigraphic position, and mineralogy without resorting to geochemical fingerprinting. The intention is to develop a cost efficient and reproducible means of utilizing tephra as a chronostratigraphic marker in archaeological contexts and examine the intersection of human life with volcanic events and dynamic environments. Tephra in archaeological contexts can have ambiguous placement between ecofact and artifact, as is the case with a small number of crude tephra sculptures in my excavated material and that of a seminal prior study. While the research project utilizes visible tephra layers, not cryptotephra, by all means the tephra data prove to be cryptic. Engagement with the imperfection entailed in meshing multidisciplinary data sets and different scientific communities with interests in tephra, particularly in lesser studied regions, is posited as a 'total' view of tephra.

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Can tree-ring chemistry reveal absolute dates for past volcanic eruptions?

Cited by 57 publications

References 86 publications

Laser Trimming Tree-Ring Cores for Dendrochemistry of Metals

Laser Trimming Tree-Ring Cores for Dendrochemistry of Metals

Some considerations in the reconstruction of lead levels using laser ablation: lessons from the design stage of dendrochemistry study, St.John's, Canada

The cultural nature of tephra: ‘Problematic’ ecofacts and artifacts and the Barú volcano, Panamá

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