An Improved Motorized Corer and Sample Processing System for Frozen Peat

An improved corer and associated equipment for obtaining continuous samples of frozen peat are described. We developed the system through laboratory and field trials—on Bathurst Island, Nunavut, Canada in 2000 and Nordvestø, Carey Islands, Greenland, in 2001—as part of efforts to collect continuous...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arctic 2004-09, Vol.57 (3), p.242-246
Main Authors: Nørnberg, Tommy, Goodsite, Michael E., Shotyk, William
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptability
Aluminum
Archives
Cores
Design
Design and construction
Design engineering
Drilling and boring machinery
Environment
Equipment and supplies
Geological surveys
Geotechnical engineering
Heavy metals
Ice
Innovations
Military engineering
Motors
Peat
Persistent organic pollutants
Quaternary
Saws
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:An improved corer and associated equipment for obtaining continuous samples of frozen peat are described. We developed the system through laboratory and field trials—on Bathurst Island, Nunavut, Canada in 2000 and Nordvestø, Carey Islands, Greenland, in 2001—as part of efforts to collect continuous samples of Arctic peat cores for an environmental archive of heavy metal and persistent organic pollutants. A new system for precise slicing of frozen peat cores and accurate volumetric sub-sampling of slices is also described and illustrated, since pre-analytical preparation of the cores is important for accurate trace analyses, as well as for determination of net accumulation rates. The coring system is portable, weighing 26 kg with no fuel, motor, or samples. The system is designed for Arctic use. It recovers continuous cores up to 10 m below surface in sections 70 cm long and 9.7 cm in diameter, with a cutting head robust enough to penetrate slightly below the organics to probe the substrate. It takes a two-man team approximately 15 minutes per section for sampling and packing. The coring system costs about US $8000 in parts and labor, plus the cost of the motor. Its adaptability will make it useful for recovering a broad range of Quaternary materials frozen in the Arctic. /// On décrit un carottier perfectionné, ainsi que le matériel auxiliaire, qui permet d'obtenir des échantillons en continu de tourbe gelée. Le système a été mis au point à la suite d'essais en laboratoire et sur le terrain –dans l'île de Bathurst (Canada) en 2000 et à Nordvestø dans les îles Carey (Groenland) en 2001 –dans le cadre de travaux visant à recueillir des échantillons en continu de carottes de tourbe arctique pour obtenir des archives environnementales des métaux lourds et des polluants organiques persistants. En outre, on décrit et on illustre un nouveau système permettant de trancher les carottes de tourbe gelée de façon précise et d'en faire un sous-échantillonnage volumétrique exact, vu l'importance de la préparation des carottes pour effectuer une analyse de traces rigoureuse ainsi que pour déterminer le taux net d'accumulation. Avec un poids de 26 kg sans carburant, moteur ni échantillons, le système de carottage est portable. Il est conçu pour être utilisé dans l'Arctique. Il retire des échantillons en continu jusqu'à une profondeur de 10 m de la surface, en sections de 70 cm de long et de 9,7 cm de diamètre, grâce à une tête de coupe assez robuste pour pénétrer légèreme
ISSN:0004-0843
1923-1245
DOI:10.14430/arctic501