In waters formed before similar to 1975, Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)-12 ventil
ation ages are usually older than CFC-11 ages? which are in turn older than
CFC ratio ages. A simple model shows that these discrepancies result from
the effects of mixing on CFC ages, which are biased due to the nonlinear in
creases in atmospheric CFCs before 1975. CFC-11 ages are biased younger tha
n CFC-12 ages because CFC-11's relative increase rate in the atmosphere was
higher. In the model results, ideal ages are consistently older than CFC a
ges in waters ventilated prior to similar to 1975. The differences between
CFC ages and ideal ages are reflected ih the discrepancies among CFC-II, CF
C-12, and CFC ratio ages, however, and increase with increasing importance
of diffusive versus advective tracer transport. Thus it may prove possible
to estimate the magnitude of CFC age mixing biases based on differences mea
sured between CFC-11, CFC-12, and CFC ratio ages.