Preparation of peat samples for inorganic geochemistry used as palaeoenvironmental proxies

Abstract

This article provides a brief review of protocols used in peat inorganic geochemistry. We emphasise the key issues that could lead to inter-comparison problems. For each section (drying, grinding, non-destructive analyses, acid digestions and destructive analyses), recommendations are provided to guide the reader through an idealised protocol, which is the only workable approach for studies incorporating long-term comparisons.