A 15-person training course will teach early-career researchers how to scan sediment cores without destroying them, using X-ray fluorescence, physical property analysis, and X-ray imaging. Sediment cores—long tubes of mud and rock pulled from lakebeds and ocean floors—are irreplaceable archives of Earth’s history. Traditionally, analysing them meant slicing or grinding samples, which consumes the material. This course addresses a growing skills gap: researchers need to extract maximum information from cores while keeping them intact for future study. Without such training, valuable samples in global core repositories risk being underused or wasted. If successful, the course will create a cohort of researchers able to integrate multiple data types—chemistry, density, internal structure—from a single core. This could improve studies of past climate change, carbon storage in sediments, and geohazard assessment. Better interpretation of sediment records feeds directly into climate models, which inform infrastructure planning, coastal defences, and carbon accounting. The course also promotes digital archiving, ensuring core data remains accessible long after the physical sample is returned to storage.
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This course focuses on non-destructive sediment core scanning and digitisation techniques, covering a range of essential methods in environmental and earth sciences. It's designed primarily for NERC PhD students and early career researchers (ECRs) working with sediment core data, but welcomes anyone interested in these technologies. The course is limited to 15 participants in person, with the option to attend virtually for the theory segments of the course. The course addresses the growing need for expertise in analysing sediment cores without destroying them, providing crucial information about past environmental conditions, carbon capture and storage, geohazards and climate change. It covers three main areas: X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) core scanning Physical property analysis X-ray imaging Specifically, the course includes: Various non-destructive scanning techniques, with emphasis on: XRF core scanning (using Avaatech and Itrax systems) Physical property measurements (e.g., magnetic susceptibility, density) X-ray imaging for internal structure visualization Understanding the capabilities and limitations of each scanning method Techniques for ensuring data quality and reliability across different methods Introduction to processing and digitalising multi-parameter sediment core data using programming languages Key objectives include: Providing participants with the key skills in using a suite of non-destructive core scanning technologies Improving participants' data interpretation and quality control abilities across multiple parameters Introducing computational approaches to integrate and analyse diverse sediment core datasets This training has potential applications in various fields, including: Paleoclimatology and paleoenvironmental studies Marine and lacustrine sedimentology Geochemistry and environmental monitoring Climate change research Geohazard assessment Stratigraphic correlation and age modelling Digital archiving of geological samples By providing hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology and data analysis techniques, this course aims to equip researchers with comprehensive skills for advancing our understanding of Earth's past and present environmental conditions while preserving valuable sediment core samples in the network of core repositories globally. This course represents an important step in bridging the gap between diverse data collection methods, preservation, and integrated interpretation in environmental sciences. It has the potential to lead to more comprehensive and nuanced studies of Earth's history and climate change impacts, while ensuring the longevity and maximum utility of valuable sediment core resources.
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