Water stability of aggregates in subtropical and tropical soils (Georgia and China) and its relationships with the mineralogy and chemical properties

Water-stable aggregates isolated from three subtropical and one tropical soil (Western Georgia and China) were studied for their organic carbon, cation exchange capacity (CEC), specific surface area, magnetic susceptibility, and total chemical elements. The soils were also studied for their particle...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Eurasian soil science 2009-04, Vol.42 (4), p.415-425
Main Authors: Alekseeva, T. V., Sokolowska, Z., Hajnos, M., Alekseev, A. O., Kalinin, P. I.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aggregates
Cation exchange
Chemical properties
Clay minerals
Earth and Environmental Science
Earth Sciences
Geotechnical Engineering & Applied Earth Sciences
Iron oxides
Mineralogy
Minerals
Organic carbon
Organic matter
Physics
Soil Physics
Soil sciences
Soil structure
Soils
Studies
Trace elements
Tropical environments
Vermiculite
Water
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Summary:Water-stable aggregates isolated from three subtropical and one tropical soil (Western Georgia and China) were studied for their organic carbon, cation exchange capacity (CEC), specific surface area, magnetic susceptibility, and total chemical elements. The soils were also studied for their particle-size distribution, mineralogy, and nonsilicate Fe and Al oxides. Describe the water stability, three indices have been used: the content of water-stable macroaggregates (>0.25 mm), the mean weighted diameter of the aggregates, and the numerical aggregation index. The yellow-cinnamonic soil (China) was neutral, and the three other soils were acid. The soils were degraded with a low content of organic matter. The yellow-cinnamonic soil was characterized by the lowest water stability due to the predominantly vermiculite composition of the clay. The high water stability of the Oxisol structure was determined by the kaolinites and high content of oxides. In three out of the four soils studied, the hierarchical levels of the soil structure organization were defined; they were identified by the content of organic matter and the Ca + Mg (in Oxisols). Iron oxides mainly participated in the formation of micro-aggregates; Al and Mn contributed to the formation of macroaggregates. The water-stable aggregates acted as sorption geochemical barriers and accumulated Pb, Zn, Cd, Cs, and other trace elements up to concentrations exceeding their levels in the soil by 5 times and more. The highest correlations were obtained with CEC, Mn, and P rather than with organic carbon and Fe.
ISSN:1064-2293
1556-195X
DOI:10.1134/S1064229309040085