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Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose

John du Plessis Orcid Logo, Dipayan Paul Orcid Logo, Margot Kuitems Orcid Logo, Anita Aerts-Bijma Orcid Logo, Neil Loader Orcid Logo, Harro A.J. Meijer Orcid Logo, Michael Dee Orcid Logo

Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies, Volume: 61, Issue: 6, Pages: 582 - 599

Swansea University Author: Neil Loader Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/10256016.2025.2529213

Abstract

Tree rings can provide annual records of environmental and climatic conditions. These records can be obtained through the physical characteristics of tree rings or the isotopic composition of their structural elements. Oxygen isotope chronologies are created by objectively combining data from trees....

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Published in: Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies
ISSN: 1025-6016 1477-2639
Published: Informa UK Limited 2025
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa70104
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The diachronic patterns observed in the &#x3B4;18O of the tree-ring cellulose represent tree-environment interactions. The abundance of 18O in tree-ring cellulose is closely linked to hydroclimate, and is influenced by source water &#x3B4;18O and atmospheric humidity. Long sequences of annually resolved tree-ring &#x3B4;18O values have been used, to good effect, in the dating of archaeological timbers and as proxies in the reconstruction of climatic variables. In this research we have established a working methodology for producing and measuring &#x3B4;18O in tree-ring &#x3B1;-cellulose at the University of Groningen. We have demonstrated an average precision of approximately 0.2&#x2009;&#x2030; under a variety of conditions, which exceeds the expected performance of continuous flow IRMS techniques. Difficulties were encountered during the calibration of tree-ring cellulose &#x3B4;18O determinations using non-cellulose, organic reference materials. 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spelling 2026-01-27T10:45:37.6881714 v2 70104 2025-08-04 Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose 8267a62100791965d08df6a7842676e6 0000-0002-6841-1813 Neil Loader Neil Loader true false 2025-08-04 BGPS Tree rings can provide annual records of environmental and climatic conditions. These records can be obtained through the physical characteristics of tree rings or the isotopic composition of their structural elements. Oxygen isotope chronologies are created by objectively combining data from trees. The diachronic patterns observed in the δ18O of the tree-ring cellulose represent tree-environment interactions. The abundance of 18O in tree-ring cellulose is closely linked to hydroclimate, and is influenced by source water δ18O and atmospheric humidity. Long sequences of annually resolved tree-ring δ18O values have been used, to good effect, in the dating of archaeological timbers and as proxies in the reconstruction of climatic variables. In this research we have established a working methodology for producing and measuring δ18O in tree-ring α-cellulose at the University of Groningen. We have demonstrated an average precision of approximately 0.2 ‰ under a variety of conditions, which exceeds the expected performance of continuous flow IRMS techniques. Difficulties were encountered during the calibration of tree-ring cellulose δ18O determinations using non-cellulose, organic reference materials. A difference in pyrolysis behaviour or one, or more compromised materials, resulted in poor agreement between measured and expected δ18O values on cellulose standards. This opens the possibility for further study. Analysis of cellulose standards alongside water reference materials and an independent quality control standard proved successful, resulting in a number of cellulose standards being accurately placed on the VSMOW-SLAP scale, including the intercomparison and de facto reference material IAEA-C3 holocellulose. Journal Article Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies 61 6 582 599 Informa UK Limited 1025-6016 1477-2639 Tree rings; Cellulose; IAEA-C3; δ18O; Pyrolysis 2 11 2025 2025-11-02 10.1080/10256016.2025.2529213 COLLEGE NANME Biosciences Geography and Physics School COLLEGE CODE BGPS Swansea University Another institution paid the OA fee This work was supported by the European Research Council under grant agreement ID 101045660. Neil J. Loader is supported by the UK Research and Innovation Project (EP/X025098/1). 2026-01-27T10:45:37.6881714 2025-08-04T12:19:37.7440682 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography John du Plessis 0009-0003-6849-7324 1 Dipayan Paul 0000-0002-2640-8122 2 Margot Kuitems 0000-0002-8803-2650 3 Anita Aerts-Bijma 0000-0002-7227-791x 4 Neil Loader 0000-0002-6841-1813 5 Harro A.J. Meijer 0000-0001-8744-5632 6 Michael Dee 0000-0002-3116-453x 7 70104__35082__26559792a65c4c7e9c50ff1edaadadf4.pdf 70104.VOR.pdf 2025-09-12T12:29:44.9907803 Output 1118652 application/pdf Version of Record true © 2025 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). true eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
spellingShingle Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
Neil Loader
title_short Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
title_full Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
title_fullStr Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
title_full_unstemmed Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
title_sort Resolving challenges in the development of a protocol for δ18O determinations on tree-ring cellulose
author_id_str_mv 8267a62100791965d08df6a7842676e6
author_id_fullname_str_mv 8267a62100791965d08df6a7842676e6_***_Neil Loader
author Neil Loader
author2 John du Plessis
Dipayan Paul
Margot Kuitems
Anita Aerts-Bijma
Neil Loader
Harro A.J. Meijer
Michael Dee
format Journal article
container_title Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies
container_volume 61
container_issue 6
container_start_page 582
publishDate 2025
institution Swansea University
issn 1025-6016
1477-2639
doi_str_mv 10.1080/10256016.2025.2529213
publisher Informa UK Limited
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
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hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography
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description Tree rings can provide annual records of environmental and climatic conditions. These records can be obtained through the physical characteristics of tree rings or the isotopic composition of their structural elements. Oxygen isotope chronologies are created by objectively combining data from trees. The diachronic patterns observed in the δ18O of the tree-ring cellulose represent tree-environment interactions. The abundance of 18O in tree-ring cellulose is closely linked to hydroclimate, and is influenced by source water δ18O and atmospheric humidity. Long sequences of annually resolved tree-ring δ18O values have been used, to good effect, in the dating of archaeological timbers and as proxies in the reconstruction of climatic variables. In this research we have established a working methodology for producing and measuring δ18O in tree-ring α-cellulose at the University of Groningen. We have demonstrated an average precision of approximately 0.2 ‰ under a variety of conditions, which exceeds the expected performance of continuous flow IRMS techniques. Difficulties were encountered during the calibration of tree-ring cellulose δ18O determinations using non-cellulose, organic reference materials. A difference in pyrolysis behaviour or one, or more compromised materials, resulted in poor agreement between measured and expected δ18O values on cellulose standards. This opens the possibility for further study. Analysis of cellulose standards alongside water reference materials and an independent quality control standard proved successful, resulting in a number of cellulose standards being accurately placed on the VSMOW-SLAP scale, including the intercomparison and de facto reference material IAEA-C3 holocellulose.
published_date 2025-11-02T05:30:30Z
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