Dating services

• Backround to Radiocarbon dating
• Application areas
• What is involved in the dating service
• Types of project
• Sample selection and identification
• Sample submission
• Charges
• Turnaround times

The laboratory has over 30 years of experience in the application of radiocarbon dating and associated research and is happy to help with all aspects of the radiocarbon dating process from project design to calibration and statistical analysis. This enables the best use to be made of the radiocarbon technique.

Application areas

We offer radiocarbon dating services for a whole range of different research areas including:

• Archaeology and art history
• Biological and genetic research
• Earth science
• Environmental science

What is involved in the dating service

In all cases we encourage a collaborative approach to dating projects where we work together with users of the facility to answer the relevant research questions. In particular ORAU routinely undertakes:

• Project design including numerical simulations using OxCal
• Sample selection and advice on identification
• Specialist sampling including for valuable and delicate objects
• Removal of contaminants and preservatives
• Chemical purification of samples
• Stable isotope and elemental analysis and its interpretation for radiocarbon dating
• AMS radiocarbon measurement and interpretation of results
• Calibration of radiocarbon dates using OxCal
• Bayesian analysis of radiocarbon dates in site based models and for age-depth models using OxCal
• Publication of dating studies through our own datelists and in collaboration with users of the service.

Types of project

ORAU is happy to perform dating analyses for archaeologists; environmental scientists, biologists or anyone else interested in determining the radiocarbon content of material. We regularly perform analyses for public and private organisations from around the world.

Radiocarbon dating projects can be undertaken in a number of different ways including:

• Direct charging on a per-sample basis either for commercial projects or research projects funded for other organisations
• Collaborative research projects with external funding
• Projects funded through the NRCF national facility

See sample selection, identification and submission.