Abstract
We follow the same method of radiocarbon dating used in the Gif-Sur-Yvette dating laboratory. Samples are inspected and foreign material removed. Wood and charcoal samples are treated with 0.1N ammonium hydroxide and 0.1N hydrochloric acid. Shells are treated with 10% hydrochloric acid to eliminate surface contamination. Bone samples are treated with 0.1N ammonium hydroxide to remove humic acids and 10% HCl to remove inorganic carbonate and retain collagen for radiocarbon measurements. Sample CO2 is produced by combustion in oxygen. The stream of gases passes over CuO at 600°C to insure complete oxidation of C to CO2 and through traps containing, respectively, silver nitrate and sulfuric chromic acid solution for purification; barium carbonate is precipited from barium hydroxide bubblers. After filtering and drying, CO2 is liberated from barium carbonate by sulfuric acid. The CO2 is used to fill a 1.2L steel proportional counter at 740mm Hg. Age calculations are based on a 14C half-life of 5568 ± yr and 0.95 of activity of the NBS oxalic acid standard; ages are quoted in yr before 1950. Finite ages are quoted with 1σ criterion corresponding to the standard deviation based only on counting errors; the maximum age is quoted with 4 σ criterion above background.
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