Thermoluminescence dating of loess and palaeosols from the Lantian section, Shaanxi province, China

Abstract Ten samples of loess and palaeosol collected from the upper part of Lantian section, Shaanxi, have been dated using the fine grain (4–11 μm) TL technique. Palaeodose values were determined by the regeneration method (Readhead, 1982). The TL ages obtained ranged from 2.4 × 10 4 years for the upper Malan Loess L 1 to 1.5 × 10 5 years for the upper part of loess L 2 of the Lishi Loess. Fine grain TL dating does not seem to be suitable for the samples older than 150 ka. The uncertainty of the TL age estimate, especially for the palaeosol sample, may be primarily an effect of disequilibrium of the 238 U decay chain and of water content variations since deposition of sediments.