RESEARCH PAPER
Aliquot Preparation Strategies and Their Impact on Inter-Aliquot Reproducibility in Portable OSL Measurements
 
 
More details
Hide details
1
Centre for Science, Athabasca University, Canada
 
 
Submission date: 2025-10-17
 
 
Acceptance date: 2026-04-13
 
 
Online publication date: 2026-04-24
 
 
Publication date: 2026-04-24
 
 
Corresponding author
Ken Munyikwa   

Centre for Science, Athabasca University, 1 University Drive, T9S 3A3, Athabasca, Canada
 
 
Geochronometria 2026;53(1)
 
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Over the past decade, the use of portable optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) readers has expanded rapidly, enabling the recovery of latent stratigraphic information from bulk sediments of late Quaternary age. These applications assume that luminescence signals from sample aliquots are reproducible, yet no study has explicitly examined preparation strategies that optimize inter-aliquot consistency. Consequently, no standardized methods for sample preparation exist in portable OSL research. This study initiates this discussion by testing how aliquot preparation and sample size influence reproducibility. Four samples were collected from postglacial eolian dunes in Alberta, Canada. For each sample, 20 aliquots were prepared using four approaches, yielding 320 aliquots: (a) monogranular layers of equal volume portions (~1.5 g), (b) monogranular layers of equal-weight (1.5 g), (c) monogranular layers mounted on double-sided adhesive segments of equal area (~1.0 g), and (d) multilayer portions of equal weight (12.0 g). All aliquots were analyzed with a portable OSL reader. Statistical results showed that for blue-OSL signals, reproducibility varied both among samples and across preparation methods. However, multilayer aliquots prepared with equal weights (12 g) consistently produced the highest reproducibility, suggesting that larger grain populations enhance inter-aliquot consistency. For IRSL signals, no preparation method offered a clear advantage.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author would like to thank Harrison Gray and an anonymous reviewer for the constructive feedback provided during the review process. Susan Fryters is thanked for reading earlier versions of the manuscript.
REFERENCES (42)
1.
Adolph ML, Lampe R, Lorenz S and Haberzettl T, 2021. Characterization of (paleo)lacustrine landforms using sedimentological and portable OSL investigations at Schweriner See, north-eastern Germany. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 47(2): 422–435, DOI 10.1002/esp.5258.
 
2.
Bateman MD, Stein S, Ashurst RA and Selby K, 2015. Instant luminescence chronologies? High resolution luminescence profiles using a portable luminescence reader. Quaternary Geochronology 30: 141–146, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2014.12.007.
 
3.
Ben-Melech N, Zeevi-Berger O, Porat N, Roskin J, Langgut D, Walker B and Gadot Y, 2024. Agricultural terracing and land tenure in Late Medieval Southern Levant: The Case of Nahal Ein Karim, Jerusalem. Environmental Archaeology 1–15, DOI 10.1080/14614103.2024.2371052.
 
4.
Boyd SL, Kinnaird TC, Srivastava A, Whittaker JE and Bates CR, 2022. Investigation of coastal environmental change at Ruddons Point, Fife, S.E. Scotland. Scottish Journal of Geology 58: 2002-005, DOI 10.1144/sjg2022-005.
 
5.
Blott SJ and Pye K, 2001. GRADISTAT: A grain size distribution and statistics package for the analysis of unconsolidated sediments. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 26: 1237–1248, DOI 101002/esp.261.
 
6.
Dalton AS, Dulfer HE, Margold M, Heyman J, Clague JJ, Froese DG, Gauthier MS, Hughes ALC, Jennings CE, Norris, SL and Stoker BJ, 2023. Deglaciation of the North American Ice sheet complex in calendar years based on a comprehensive database of chronological data: NADI-1. Quaternary Science Reviews 321: 108345, DOI 10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108345.
 
7.
Duller GAT, 2008. Single-grain optical dating of Quaternary sediments: why aliquot size matters in luminescence dating. Boreas 37(4): 589–612, DOI 10.1111/j.1502-3885.2008.00051.x.
 
8.
DuRoss CB, Gold RD, Gray HJ, and Nicovich SR, 2022. Portable optically stimulated luminescence age map of a paleoseismic exposure. Geology 50(4): 470–475, DOI 10.1130/G49472.1.
 
9.
Dyke AS, Andrews JT, Clark PU, England JH, Miller, GH, Shaw J and Veillete JJ, 2002. The Laurentide and Inuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum. Quaternary Science Reviews 21: 9–31, DOI 10.1016/S0277-3791(01)00095-6.
 
10.
Euzen C, Chabaux F, Rixhon G, Preusser F, Eyrolle F, Chardon V, Zander AM, Badariotti D and Schmitt L, 2024. Multi-method geochronological approach to reconstruct post-1800 floodplain sedimentation in the upper Rhine plain, France. Quaternary Geochronology 83: 101561, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2024.101561.
 
11.
Folk RL and Ward WC, 1957. Brazos river bar: a study in the significance of grain size parameters. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 27: 3–26, DOI 10.1306/74D70646-2B21-11D7-8648000102C1865D.
 
12.
Fu RR, Weiss BP, Lima EA, Kehayias P, Araujo JFDF, Glenn DR, Gelb J, Einsle JF, Bauer AM, Harrison RJ, Ali GAH and Walsworth RL, 2017. Evaluating the paleomagnetic potential of single zircon crystals using the Bishop Tuff. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 458: 1–13, DOI 10.1016/j.epsl.2016.09.038.
 
13.
Gray HJ, Mahan SA, Springer KB, and Pigati JS, 2018. Examining the relationship between portable luminescence reader measurements and depositional ages of paleowetland sediments, Las Vegas Valley, Nevada. Quaternary Geochronology 48: 80–90. DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2018.07.006.
 
14.
Gray H, DuRoss C, Nicovich S and Gold R, 2022. Luminescence sediment tracing reveals the complex dynamics of colluvial wedge formation. Science Advances 8(22): eabo0747, DOI 10.1126/sciadv.abo0747.
 
15.
Holter ME, 1971. Silica (dune) sand from the Medicine Hat area, Alberta; Research Council of Alberta, RCA/AGS Earth Sciences Report 1971-05, 25 p.
 
16.
Huntley DJ and Lamothe M, 2001. Ubiquity of anomalous fading in K-feldspars and the measurement and correction for it in optical dating Available to Purchase. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 38 (7): 1093–1106, DOI 10.1139/e01-013.
 
17.
Kars RH, Wallinga J and Cohen KM, 2008. A new approach towards anomalous fading correction for feldspar IRSL dating — tests on samples in field saturation. Radiation Measurements 43, 786–790. DOI 10.1016/j.radmeas.2008.01.021.
 
18.
Kinniard T, Bolos J, Turner A and Turner S, 2017. Optically-stimulated luminescence profiling and dating of historic agricultural terraces in Catalonia (Spain). Journal of Archaeological Science 78: 77–77, DOI 10.1016/j.jas.2016.11.003.
 
19.
Kinnaird T, Dawson T, Sanderson D, Hamilton D, Cresswell A and Rennell R, 2019. Chronostratigraphy of an eroding complex Atlantic roundhouse, Baile Sear, Scotland. Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology 14(1): 46–60, DOI 10.1080/15564894.2017.1368744.
 
20.
Majgier R., Maternicki, K, Mandowski A, Moska P, Biernacka M and Kreutzer S, 2025. The Helios OSL reader: a portable system for dating and dosimetry applications. Geochronometria 52: 208873, DOI 10.20858/geochr/208873.
 
21.
Muños-Salinas E, Castillo M, Arce JL, Correa-Metrio A, Cruz-Zaragoza E and Valoix A, 2023. Using fallout 137Cs and OSL as sediment tracers in badlands: a case study of Tepezalá volcano (Central Mexico). Geografiska Annaler: Series A, Physical Geography 105(1): 27–46, DOI 10.1080/04353676.2023.2171999.
 
22.
Munyikwa K and Brown S, 2014. Rapid equivalent dose estimation for eolian dune sands using a portable OSL reader and polymineralic standardised luminescence growth curves: Expedited sample screening for OSL dating. Quaternary Geochronology 22: 116–125, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2014.04.002.
 
23.
Munyikwa K, Kinnaird TC and Sanderson DCW, 2021. The potential of portable luminescence readers in geomorphological investigations: a review. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 46: 131–150, DOI 10.1002/esp.4975.
 
24.
Munyikwa K, Rittenour T and Feathers J, 2017. Temporal constraints for the Late Wisconsinan deglaciation of western Canada using eolian dune chronologies from western Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 470: 147–165, DOI 10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.12.034.
 
25.
Nitundil S, Stone A and Srivasatava A, 2023. Applicability of using portable luminescence reader for rapid age-assessment of dune accumulation in the That desert, India. Quaternary Geochronology 78: 101468, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2023.101468.
 
26.
Porat N, Lopez GI, Lensky N, Elinson R, Avni Y, Elgart-Sharon Y, Faershtein G and Gadot Y, 2019. Using portable OSL reader to obtain a time scale for soil accumulation and erosion in archaeological terraces, the Judean Highlands, Israel. Quaternary Geochronology 49: 65–70, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2018.04.001.
 
27.
Portenga EW and Bishop P, 2016. Confirming geomorphological interpretations based on portable OSL reader data. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 41(3): 427–432, DOI 10.1002/esp.3834.
 
28.
Rex CL, Staff RA, Sanswerson DCW, Cresswell AJ, Marshall MH, Hyodo M, Horiuchi D, Tada R and Nagakawa T, 2022. Controls on luminescence signals in lake sediment cores. A study from Lake Suigetsu, Japan. Quaternary Geochronology 71(5): 101319, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2022.101319.
 
29.
Rizza M, Rixhon G, Valla PG, Gairoard S, Delanghe D, Fleury J, Tal M and Groleau S, 2024. Revisiting a proof of concept in quartz-OSL bleaching processes using sands from a modern-day river (the Séveraisse, French Alps). Quaternary Geochronology 82(1): 101520, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2024.101520.
 
30.
Robins L, Roskin J, Marder O, Edeltin, L, Yu L and Greenbaum N, 2023. Geomorphic, environmental and archeological significance of Last Glacial Maximum to middle Holocene dune damming, northwestern Negev dunefield margin, Israel. Quaternary Science Reviews 308: 108098, DOI 10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108098.
 
31.
Robins L, Roskin J, Yu L, Bookman R and Greenbaum N, 2022. Aeolian-fluvial processes control landscape evolution along dunefield margins of the north-western Negev (Israel) since the Late Quaternary. Quaternary Science Reviews 285: 107520, DOI 10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107520.
 
32.
Roman M, Píšková A, Sanderson DCW, Cresswell AJ, Bulínová M, Pokorný M, Kavan J, Jennings SJA, Lirio JM, Nedbalová L, Sacherová V, Kopalová, K, Glasser NF and Nývlt D, 2024. The Late Holocene deglaciation of James Ross Island, Antarctic Peninsula: OSL and C14 dated multi-proxy sedimentary record from Monolith Lake. Quaternary Science Reviews 333: 108863, DOI 10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.108693.
 
33.
Sánchez-Pardo JC, Silva-Sánchez N, Kinnaird T, Turner S, Brandolini F, Carrer F, Srivastava A, López-Salas E and Vilariño O, 2024. Dating and characterizing the transformation of a Monastic landscape. A Multidisciplinary approach to the agrarian spaces of Samos Abbey (NW Spain). Environmental Archaeology 31: 81–99, DOI 10.1080/14614103.2024.2319954.
 
34.
Sanderson DCW and Murphy S, 2010. Using simple portable measurements and laboratory characterisation to help understand complex and heterogeneous sediment sequences for luminescence dating. Quaternary Geochronology 5: 299–305, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2009.02.001.
 
35.
Schulze T, Schwahn L, Fülling A, Zeeden C, Preusser F and Sprafke T, 2022. Investigating the loess-palaeosol sequence of Bahlingen-Schonenberg (Kaiserstuhl), southwestern Germany, using a multi-methodological approach. E&G Quaternary Science Journal 71: 145–162, DOI 10.24451/arbor.21443.
 
36.
Srivastava A, Kinniard T, Sevara C, Holcomb JA and Turner S, 2023. Dating agricultural terraces in the Mediterranean using luminescence: Recent progress and challenges. Land 12 (3): 716, DOI 10.3390/land12030716.
 
37.
Staff RA, Sanderson DCW, Rex CL, Cresswell A, Hyodo M, Kitaba I, Marshall MH, Schlolaut G, Yamada K, Suzuki Y, Nowinski V, Tada R and Nakagawa T, 2024. A luminescence-derived cryptostratigraphy from the Lake Suigetsu sedimentary profile, Japan: 45,000–30,200 IntCal20 yr BP. Quaternary Geochronology 83: 101588, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2024.101588.
 
38.
Stone A, Bateman MD, Burrough SL, Garzanti E, Limonta M, Radeff G and Telfer MW, 2019. Using a portable luminescence reader for rapid age assessment of aeolian sediment for reconstructing dunefield landscape evolution in southern Africa. Quaternary Geochronology 49: 57–64, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2018.03.002.
 
39.
Stone A, Bateman MD, Sanderson D, Burrough SL, Cutt R and Cresswell A, 2024. Probing sediment burial age, provenance, and geomorphic processes in dryland dunes and lake shorelines using portable luminescence data. Quaternary Geochronology 82: 101542, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2024.101542.
 
40.
Stone AEC, Bateman MD and Thomas DSG, 2015. Rapid age assessment in the Namib Sand Sea using a portable luminescence reader. Quaternary Geochronology 30: 134–140, DOI 10.1016/j.quageo.2015.02.002.
 
41.
Timar-Gabor A, Buylaert JP, Guralnik B, Trandafir-Antohi O, Constantin D, Anechitei-Deacu V, Jain M, Murray AS, Porat N, Hao Q and Wintle AG, 2017. On the importance of grain size in luminescence dating using quartz. Radiation Measurements 106: 464–471, DOI 10.1016/j.radmeas.2017.01.009.
 
42.
Wolfe SA, Huntley DJ and Ollerhead J, 2004. Relict Late Wisconsinan dune fields of the Northern Great Plains, Canada. Géographie physique et Quaternaire 56: 203–214, DOI 10.7202/013146ar.
 
eISSN:1897-1695
ISSN:1733-8387
Journals System - logo
Scroll to top