A PRACTICAL ALTERNATIVE TO KUBIENA BOXES FOR THE COLLECTION OF SAMPLES FOR MICROMORPHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

This poster presents a practical and economical alternative to the use of Kubiena boxes for the collection of undisturbed soil or sediment samples for micromorphological analysis. The authors promote the use of plastic electrical outlet boxes (gang boxes) that can be purchased at any hardware store for around 20 cents apiece. In addition to availability and low cost, plastic gang boxes are preferred by thin-section laboratories over that of the aluminum Kubiena boxes because they cause less wear on the thin-sectioning equipment. As with Kubiena boxes, the samples are impregnated directly in the gang boxes, yet they are more easily and efficiently retrieved, thus facilitating overall sample preparation and insuring a final product of equal or better quality.