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A Suggested Quality Assurance Protocol for Radiocarbon Dating Laboratories

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

Austin Long and
Robert M Kalin
Austin Long
Affiliation:
Environmental Radioisotope Center, Department of Geosciences The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85712
Robert M Kalin
Affiliation:
Environmental Radioisotope Center, Department of Geosciences The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85712
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Abstract

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The current intercomparison of data from 14C laboratories reveals significant variability among liquid scintillation laboratories, suggesting that identical samples submitted to different laboratories may yield values that differ by much more than expected on a purely statistical basis. Erroneous dates (recently corrected) by a well-established 14C laboratory give rise to further concern for quality 14C data. Thus, it is incumbent on each laboratory to develop and implement a quality assurance and control (QA/QC) program in order to ensure accuracy of results and to alert lab personnel to problems.

References

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Stuiver, M and Polach, HA 1977 Discussion: Reporting of 14C Data. Radiocarbon 19(3) 355–363.Google Scholar