Fast offline data reduction of laser ablation MC-ICP-MS Sr isotope measurements: Via an interactive Excel-based spreadsheet 'SrDR'

2020

Strontium isotopes are applied to a wide range of scientific fields and to different types of sample materials, providing valuable information foremost about provenance and age, but also on diagenetic processes and mixing relationships between different Sr reservoirs. The development of in-situ analytical techniques, such as laser ablation ICP-MS, has improved our understanding of Sr isotope variability in several field of application, because of the possibility to discriminate small-scale changes and their spatial distribution. However, large outputs of Sr isotope data are produced by laser ablation MC-ICP-MS systems, which necessitate of multiple offline steps to correct and assess the da…

Exploring prenatal and neonatal life history through dental histology in infants from the Phoenician necropolis of Motya (7th–6th century BCE)

2023

The biological life history of infants from archaeological contexts can provide a unique insight into past human populations. Dental mineralized tissues contain a permanent record of their growth that can provide access to the prenatal and early infant life, and mortality, of human skeletons. This study focuses on the histomorphometric analysis of deciduous teeth from the ‘Archaic Necropolis’ of Motya (7th–6th century BCE, Sicily–Italy). The histomorphometric analysis is conducted on prenatal and postnatal enamel of eight anterior deciduous teeth from seven individuals from this Phoenician population to estimate their chronological age-at-death, health, and enamel growth parameters. Proteom…

NanoSr - A New Carbonate Microanalytical Reference Material for In Situ Strontium Isotope Analysis

2019

The in situ measurement of Sr isotopes in carbonates by MC‐ICP‐MS is limited by the availability of suitable microanalytical reference materials (RMs), which match the samples of interest. Whereas several well‐characterised carbonate reference materials for Sr mass fractions > 1000 µg g−1 are available, there is a lack of well‐characterised carbonate microanalytical RMs with lower Sr mass fractions. Here, we present a new synthetic carbonate nanopowder RM with a Sr mass fraction of ca. 500 µg g−1 suitable for microanalytical Sr isotope research (‘NanoSr’). NanoSr was analysed by both solution‐based and in situ techniques. Element mass fractions were determined using EPMA (Ca mass fraction),…

Evidence of warm and humid interstadials in central Europe during early MIS 3 revealed by a multi-proxy speleothem record

2018

Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3, 57-27 ka) was characterised by numerous rapid climate oscillations (i.e., Dansgaard-Oeschger (D/O-) events), which are reflected in various climate archives. So far, MIS 3 speleothem records from central Europe have mainly been restricted to caves located beneath temperate Alpine glaciers or close to the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, MIS 3 seemed to be too cold and dry to enable speleothem growth north of the Alps in central Europe. Here we present a new speleothem record from Bunker Cave, Germany, which shows two distinct growth phases from 52.0 (+0.8, -0.5) to 50.9 (+0.6, -1.3) ka and 473 (+1.0, -0.6) to 42.8 (+/- 0.9) ka, rejecting this hypothesis. These two growth…

Nano‐Powdered Calcium Carbonate Reference Materials: Significant Progress for Microanalysis?

2019

Calcium Carbonate and Phosphate Reference Materials for Monitoring Bulk and Microanalytical Determination of Sr Isotopes

2017

In situ laser ablation analyses rely on the microanalytical homogeneity of reference materials (RMs) and a similar matrix and mass fraction between unknown samples and RMs to obtain reliable results. Suitable carbonate and phosphate RMs for determination of Sr isotope ratios in such materials are limited. Thus, we determined Sr-87/Sr-86 ratios of several carbonate (JCt-1, JCp-1, MACS-1, MACS-3) and phosphate (MAPS-4, MAPS-5, NIST SRM 1400, NIST SRM 1486) international RMs using dissolved samples and two different multi-collector inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometers (MC-ICP-MS). Our Sr isotope data are in agreement with published data and have an improved measurement precision for s…

Strontium Uptake and Intra-Population 87Sr/86Sr Variability of Bones and Teeth—Controlled Feeding Experiments With Rodents (Rattus norvegicus, Cavia …

2020

Strontium isotopes in biogenic apatite, especially enamel, are widely employed to determine provenance and track migration in palaeontology and archaeology. Body tissues record the 87Sr/86Sr of bioavailable Sr of ingested food and water. To identify non-local individuals, knowledge of the 87Sr/86Sr of a non-migratory population is required. However, varying factors such as tissue turnover rates, feeding selectivity, Sr content, digestibility of food, and the ingestion of mineral dust can influence body tissue 87Sr/86Sr. To evaluate the Sr contribution of diet and water to mammalian hard tissues 87Sr/86Sr, controlled feeding studies are necessary. Here we present 87Sr/86Sr from controlled fe…