Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores

Low-concentration insoluble microparticles that are preserved in ice cores offer valuable information for reconstructing past environmental changes. However, their low concentrations and limited sample availability present challenges for extraction and recovery while ensuring representativeness of r...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Dieter R. Tetzner, Claire S. Allen, Elizabeth R. Thomas, Jack D. Humby
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-03-01
Series:Frontiers in Earth Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2025.1530875/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850226506150707200
author Dieter R. Tetzner
Claire S. Allen
Elizabeth R. Thomas
Jack D. Humby
author_facet Dieter R. Tetzner
Claire S. Allen
Elizabeth R. Thomas
Jack D. Humby
author_sort Dieter R. Tetzner
collection DOAJ
description Low-concentration insoluble microparticles that are preserved in ice cores offer valuable information for reconstructing past environmental changes. However, their low concentrations and limited sample availability present challenges for extraction and recovery while ensuring representativeness of results. The analysis of ice cores using continuous flow analysis systems generates large volumes of excess meltwater as a by-product with the potential to improve the acquisition of targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticle samples. Here, we present Antarctic ice core diatom records, representative of targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticle records, recovered from excess meltwater generated from a continuous flow analysis system. We analyse these records to evaluate the feasibility of using this excess meltwater to generate replicable and representative results. Our results demonstrate that diatom records obtained from a continuous flow analysis system exhibit high recovery percentages and replicability, with minor quantifiable loss and memory effects in the system. Our multi-outlet sampling assessment highlights that the waste lines of the continuous flow analysis system are an optimal source for sampling excess meltwater. Additionally, the analysis of diatom spatial distribution in filters suggest a lower threshold for applying analytical methods which assume targeted microparticles are homogeneously distributed. These results confirm that a continuous flow analysis system can be used to extract targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticles from ice core samples, yielding representative and reproducible results.
format Article
id doaj-art-1f4444f7b2fe45bd8872c61ac035bdbb
institution OA Journals
issn 2296-6463
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Earth Science
spelling doaj-art-1f4444f7b2fe45bd8872c61ac035bdbb2025-08-20T02:05:03ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Earth Science2296-64632025-03-011310.3389/feart.2025.15308751530875Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice coresDieter R. TetznerClaire S. AllenElizabeth R. ThomasJack D. HumbyLow-concentration insoluble microparticles that are preserved in ice cores offer valuable information for reconstructing past environmental changes. However, their low concentrations and limited sample availability present challenges for extraction and recovery while ensuring representativeness of results. The analysis of ice cores using continuous flow analysis systems generates large volumes of excess meltwater as a by-product with the potential to improve the acquisition of targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticle samples. Here, we present Antarctic ice core diatom records, representative of targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticle records, recovered from excess meltwater generated from a continuous flow analysis system. We analyse these records to evaluate the feasibility of using this excess meltwater to generate replicable and representative results. Our results demonstrate that diatom records obtained from a continuous flow analysis system exhibit high recovery percentages and replicability, with minor quantifiable loss and memory effects in the system. Our multi-outlet sampling assessment highlights that the waste lines of the continuous flow analysis system are an optimal source for sampling excess meltwater. Additionally, the analysis of diatom spatial distribution in filters suggest a lower threshold for applying analytical methods which assume targeted microparticles are homogeneously distributed. These results confirm that a continuous flow analysis system can be used to extract targeted low-concentration insoluble microparticles from ice core samples, yielding representative and reproducible results.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2025.1530875/fullice coreAntarcticacryptotephracontinuous flow analysis (CFA)pollendiatoms
spellingShingle Dieter R. Tetzner
Claire S. Allen
Elizabeth R. Thomas
Jack D. Humby
Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
Frontiers in Earth Science
ice core
Antarctica
cryptotephra
continuous flow analysis (CFA)
pollen
diatoms
title Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
title_full Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
title_fullStr Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
title_full_unstemmed Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
title_short Use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
title_sort use of excess meltwater from continuous flow analysis systems for the analysis of low concentration insoluble microparticles in ice cores
topic ice core
Antarctica
cryptotephra
continuous flow analysis (CFA)
pollen
diatoms
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2025.1530875/full
work_keys_str_mv AT dieterrtetzner useofexcessmeltwaterfromcontinuousflowanalysissystemsfortheanalysisoflowconcentrationinsolublemicroparticlesinicecores
AT clairesallen useofexcessmeltwaterfromcontinuousflowanalysissystemsfortheanalysisoflowconcentrationinsolublemicroparticlesinicecores
AT elizabethrthomas useofexcessmeltwaterfromcontinuousflowanalysissystemsfortheanalysisoflowconcentrationinsolublemicroparticlesinicecores
AT jackdhumby useofexcessmeltwaterfromcontinuousflowanalysissystemsfortheanalysisoflowconcentrationinsolublemicroparticlesinicecores