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Peat (14C)

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

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Definition

Peat. A highly organic soil that results when waterlogged anaerobic conditions suppress the degradation of vegetation.

Radiocarbon dating of peat. Measurement of the radiocarbon content in samples of either bulk peat or carbon-bearing fractions isolated from bulk peat by physical and/or chemical treatments. The objective is usually either to provide an absolute chronology for environmental or archaeological records contained within a peat deposit or to understand the biogeochemical cycling of carbon within the peat system.

Introduction

Peat is a highly organic deposit (e.g., 50–95 % organic matter on a dry mass basis), comprising a thin, more rapidly cycling “acrotelm” layer, overlying a thick, saturated “catotelm” layer, in which vegetation decay is very slow (Ingram, 1978; Clymo, 1984). Peat develops as a result of waterlogged anaerobic and acidic conditions that inhibit vegetation decomposition (c.f. Yavitt and Lang, 1990; Johnson and Damman, 1991; Valentine et al., 1994;...

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  1. AMS Laboratory, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, Ranking Ave, G75 0QF, East Kilbride, Scotland, UK

    Philippa Ascough

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  1. Philippa Ascough
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Correspondence to Philippa Ascough .

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  1. McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

    W. Jack Rink  & Jeroen W. Thompson  & 

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Ascough, P. (2015). Peat (14C). In: Jack Rink, W., Thompson, J.W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6304-3_166

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