Does deposition depth control the OSL bleaching of fluvial sediment?

Abstract

The Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) signal from fluvial sediment often contains a remnant from the previous deposition cycle, leading to a partially bleached equivalent-dose distribution. Although identification of the burial dose is of primary concern, the degree of bleaching could potentially provide insights into geomorphic processes. However, comparison of bleaching between samples is complicated by sample-to-sample variation in aliquot size and luminescence sensitivity. Here we develop an age model to account for these effects. With measurement data from multi-grain aliquots, we use Bayesian computational statistics to estimate the burial dose and bleaching parameters of the single-grain dose distribution. We apply the model to 46 samples taken from fluvial sediment of Rhine branches in the Netherlands, and compare the results with environmental predictor variables (depositional energy and environment, sample depth, depth relative to mean water level, dose rate). We find no significant correlations between any predictor variable and the bleaching parameters, although large uncertainties may be obscuring relationships. However, the best bleached samples are found close to the mean water level. Based on these results, we hypothesize that bleaching occurs mainly during fluvial transport rather than upon deposition, with extra bleaching possible for sediments near the transition of channel to overbank deposits due to local reworking after deposition either by wind or water.