The application of radiofluorescence dating (IR-RF) on loess

黄土及其古土壤是研究第四纪古环境的重要沉积档案。然而，要解释这些档案，可靠的年代地层学是至关重要的，而发光测年技术在建立这些年代地层学方面发挥了重要作用。到目前为止，由于特定的矿物特性和应用的发光测年技术的方法问题，上一次冰川/间冰旋回的黄土主要是通过发光测年成功获得的。红外辐射荧光测年技术(IR/RF)代表了一种替代和创新的方法，它使沉积物的测年能够远远超过上一次冰川-间冰期周期。然而，尽管IR/RF测年技术已经成功地应用于各种沉积物类型，但它的常规应用还没有给出，开发可靠的IR/RF测年协议是具有挑战性的。因此，需要回答有关IR/RF信号对各个测量参数的行为的基本问题，这是开发用于IR/RF测年的可靠测量协议的先决条件。在这里，我们申请了一个项目，重点是建立黄土粗粒钾长石(&gt；63µm)的IR/RF测年技术。因此，将研究不同的测量参数及其对IR/RF测年结果的影响，以制定可靠的IR-RF测量方案。这项应用的第二个目标是开发一种新的多矿物细粒黄土样品(4至11微米)的IR-RF测年协议。由于粗粒钾长石和多矿物细粒样品的IR/RF测年技术在晚更新世至中更新世黄土沉积物的测年中具有很大的潜力，因此新方法的开发将使用晚更新世至中更新世的黄土物质，对其已经存在独立的年龄控制。

Loess and its paleosols represent important sedimentary archives for investigating Quaternary paleoenvironments. However, to interpret these archives, a robust chronostratigraphy is of crucial importance and luminescence dating techniques play a major role in establishing these chronostratigraphies. So far, dominantly loess from the last glacial/interglacial cycle was successfully dated by luminescence dating, caused by specific mineral characteristics and due to methodological problems of the applied luminescence dating techniques. An alternative and innovative approach is represented by the infrared radiofluorescence dating technique (IR/RF), which enables the dating of sediments far beyond the last glacial-interglacial cycle. However, even though the IR/RF dating technique could already successfully be applied to various sediment types, its routine application is not given and the development of a reliable IR/RF dating protocol is challenging. Therefore, basic questions in respect to the behavior of the IR/RF signal to individual measurement parameters need to be answered, a prerequisite to develop a robust measurement protocol for IR/RF dating. Here we apply for a project, which focus on establishing the IR/RF dating technique for coarse grain K-feldspar of loess (> 63 µm). Therefore, different measurements parameters and their impact on the IR/RF dating results will be investigated, to develop a reliable IR-RF measurement protocol. The second objective of this application is the development of a new IR-RF dating protocol for polymineral fine grain loess samples (4 to 11 µm). Because both IR/RF dating techniques, the technique for coarse-grain K Feldspar and polymineral fine grain samples, have a great potential for the dating of loess deposits from the late to middle Pleistocene, the development of the new methods will use loess material from the late to middle Pleistocene, for which already independent age control exists.