ionium
Quick Summary
Ionium is a natural radioactive isotope of thorium with a mass number of 230. It is also known as thorium-230 and has a half-life of approximately 80,000 years.12
This property makes ionium useful in dating marine sediments, as it can help establish their time of origin. The method relies on the fact that uranium compounds are soluble in seawater, while thorium compounds are not. This means thorium isotopes produced from uranium decay in seawater readily precipitate and become incorporated into sediments.2
The ionium-thorium dating method assumes that the ratio of thorium-230 to thorium-232 in ocean water remains constant and that these isotopes precipitate in a constant ratio without migration within the sediments.2
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- ionium-thorium dating
ionium-thorium dating, method of establishing the time of origin of marine sediments according to the amount of ionium and thorium they contain.
Read Moreionium-thorium dating, method of establishing the time of origin of marine sediments according to the amount of ionium and thorium they contain.
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datingUranium-series disequilibrium dating…time, however, uranium-234 decays to thorium-230, which results in a buildup of the latter in old corals and thereby provides a precise measure of time.
Read More…time, however, uranium-234 decays to thorium-230, which results in a buildup of the latter in old corals and thereby provides a precise measure of time.
Read More