Determining weathering rates of soils in China

As an important parameter for critical load calculation and soil acidification simulation, weathering rates of soils in China were studied using different methods of calculation. The approaches used were the mass balance approach, the soil mineralogical classification, the total analysis correlation, the PROFILE model, the MAGIC model and a simulated leaching experiment. Since chemical weathering of secondary minerals usually plays a much more important role in neutralizing the long-term acidification of soils in China than that of parent material, soil mineralogy rather than parent rock/material type, which is regarded as the most suitable factor representing weathering rates in Europe, should be adopted as the basis for soil classification. The weathering rate assigned to each soil should also be corrected when the effect of temperature is considered. Due to the variation in experimental conditions, the weathering rates of soils from laboratory experiment may be difficult to compare with field determined rates, and should be adjusted by pH and percolation rate. The comparison of various methods in this study shows that the weathering rates of soils estimated by the PROFILE model coincide well with those from other independent methods such as the dynamic modeling by MAGIC and the modified leaching experiment. The weathering rates were very low (usually lower than 1.0 kEq·ha⁻¹·year⁻¹) for Allites (including Latosol, Lateritic Red Earth, Red Earth, Yellow Earth and Yellow-Brown Earth) in south China and Silalsols (consisting of Dark Brown Forest Soil, Black Soil and Podzolic Soil) in northeast China, and very high for Alpine Soils, Desert Soils and Pedocals in west China. The content of weatherable minerals in soil is the most important factor in determining the spatial distribution of weathering rate in China, while the difference in temperature may be the reason why the weathering rate of soil in northeast China was lower than that in southeast China.     

Clay mineral evolution along a soil chronosequence in an Alpine proglacial area

As a consequence of global warming, additional areas will become ice-free and subject to weathering and soil formation. The most evident soil changes in the Alps will occur in proglacial areas where young soils will continuously develop due to glacier retreat. Little is known about the initial stages of weathering and soil formation, i.e. during the first decades of soil genesis. In this study, we investigated clay minerals formation during a time span 0-150 years in the proglacial area of Morteratsch (Swiss Alps). The soils developed on granitic till and were Lithic Leptosols.Mineralogical measurements of the clay (< 2 μm) and fine silt fraction (2-32 μm) were carried out using XRD (X-ray Diffraction) and DRIFT (Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform). Fast formation and transformation mechanisms were measured in the clay fraction. The decreasing proportion of trioctahedral phases with time confirmed active chemical weathering. Since the start of soil formation, smectite was actively formed. Some smectite (low charge) and vermiculite (high charge) was however already present in the parent material. Main source of smectite formation was biotite, hornblende and probably plagioclase. Furthermore, irregularly and regularly interstratified clay minerals (mica-HIV or mica-vermiculite) were formed immediately after the start of moraine exposure to weathering. In addition, hydroxy-interlayered smectite (HIS) as a transitory weathering product from mica to smectite was detected. Furthermore, since the start of soil evolution, kaolinite was progressively formed. In the silt fraction, only little changes could be detected; i.e. some formation of an interstratified mica-HIV or mica-vermiculite phase.The detected clay mineral formation and transformation mechanisms within this short time span confirmed the high reactivity of freshly exposed sediments, even in a cryic environment.     

Smectite formation produced by weathering in a coarse granite saprolite in Galicia (NW Spain)

Weathering of a calcalkaline granite was studied in the south of Galicia (NW Spain) where the average annual precipitation is 1400 mm and the average annual temperature is 12°C. The original rock contains perthitic K-feldspars, plagioclases with inclusions of muscovite and opaque minerals, quartz and chloritized biotite, with apatite, zircon, sphene and opaques as accessories. In the saprolite the structure of the rock is preserved, the plagioclases show up to grade 4 weathering and the biotites, between 2 and 3. Weathering in quartz and potassium feldspar crystals is manifested only by fracturing. Biotite changes following the parallel linear model and its weathering products are interstratified biotite–vermiculite and iron oxyhydroxides. The plagioclases change to a microgranular material by pseudomorphic transformation. This material, which substitutes the plagioclase, includes small clearly delimited units which retain zones with the optic characteristics of muscovite. X-ray diffraction analyses of microsamples show that they are formed by 1:1 diocthaedral phyllosilicate, smectite and a small quantity of mica. From these facts we concluded that smectite is formed inside the plagioclase crystals, and probably originates from the inclusions of muscovite contained in these crystals, as it is suggested by the microscopic study which shows the increase in volume which occurs when the crystals of muscovite are transformed.     

典型亚热带花岗岩地区森林流域岩石风化和土壤形成速率研究

岩石风化和土壤形成是地球表层物质循环的重要环节,了解岩石风化和土壤形成速率对土壤资源可持续利用和流域管理具有重要意义.本研究以位于我国亚热带的皖南花岗岩地区森林流域为例,通过野外监测其主要矿质元素输入输出量,应用流域中元素地球化学质量平衡原理,估算岩石风化和土壤形成速率.研究结果表明,在目前的降雨和酸沉降条件下,我国亚热带森林流域中,花岗岩的平均风化速率为0.696 t hm-2 a-1,土壤平均形成速率为0.598 t hm-2 a-1,所以需要经过2万年以上才能形成1 m厚的土壤.研究发现,大量输入土壤系统的H+由于被土壤风化和阳离子交换所消耗,径流水不至酸化,但是从长远来看,这会带来土壤的酸化.研究还表明根据当前的土壤形成速率,土壤允许流失量标准需要重新制定.     

Effect of termites on clay minerals in tropical soils: fungus-growing termites as weathering agents

Termites of the subfamily Macrotermitinae play an important role in tropical ecosystems: they modify the soil's physical properties and thereby make food available for other organisms. Clay is important in the architecture of Macrotermitinae termite nests, and it has been postulated that termites could modify the mineralogical properties of some clays. We have tested this hypothesis of clay transformation by termites in the laboratory under controlled conditions, using Odontotermes nr. pauperans termite species, one of the main fungus‐growing species at Lamto Research Station (Côte d'Ivoire). Soil handled by termites in nest building was saturated with SrCl₂, glycol or KCl and afterwards heated at 250°C for X‐ray diffraction analyses. Termite handling led to an increase in the expandable layers of the component clay minerals. Heating and saturation by potassium of modified clays did not close the newly formed expandable clay layers. However, differences occurred between parts of the constructions built by termites, and the clays can be ranked according to their degree of alteration in the following order: unhandled soils < galleries < chamber walls. Consequently, termites can be seen as weathering agents of clay minerals, as previously shown for micro‐organisms and plants.     

Nutrient losses by surface run-off from soils with winter cover crops and spring-ploughed soils in the south of Sweden

Winter cover crops are used as a method of reducing nitrogen (N) losses from arable land in several countries, but their effect on phosphorus (P) losses is poorly documented. Run-off and losses of nutrients and soil were measured from a clay loam with autumn-ploughed and spring-ploughed plots and from plots with winter wheat during three winter seasons (1993–1996) in Holland County in south western Sweden. The run-off water was collected in troughs dug into the soil at the end of collecting slopes placed in the experimental plots. As a result of the weather, there was only one winter in which surface run-off occurred to any great extent. On average, 75% of P was in particulate form (P_part). Neither winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) nor catch crops of English ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) reduced losses of P_part when compared with losses from autumn-ploughed soil; and losses from spring-ploughed soil containing stubble and weeds were no lower than those from autumn-ploughed soil. Losses of P_part from all treatments were moderate considering its low bio-availability. Concentrations of phosphate phosphorus (PO₄-P) were low, with a mean 0.04 mg 1⁻¹. Despite a significant increase in losses of PO₄-P from spring-ploughed soil covered with stubble and catch crops or weeds compared with that in autumn-ploughed soil, the extra input from this P source was at most 2 g ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹. This mass loss was equal to 0.5 g kg⁻¹ of the total mass of P in the vegetation. Thus, only very small extra P surface losses were found with winter cover crops compared with those with bare soils. N losses in run-off were low in all treatments.     

Mineral magnetic properties of a weathering sequence of soils derived from basalt in Eastern China

The magnetic properties and magnetic mineralogy of a weathering sequence of soils developed on basalt parent material from eastern China, were studied by rock magnetism, X-ray diffraction and soil chemical analyses to establish the connection between mineral magnetic properties and pedogenic development in a subtropical region. The magnetic susceptibility of soils formed on basalt varied greatly and did not increase with the degree of pedogenic development. The frequency-dependent susceptibility (χfd) values of soils ranged from 1.0 to 11.1% and increased with the pedogenic development. Highly significant linear relationship was found between the frequency-dependent susceptibility and the Fe_d content (R² = 0.683) and Fe_d/Fe_t ratio (R² = 0.780) in soils, indicating that pedogenic SP ferrimagnetic grains were associated with enrichment of the secondary iron oxide minerals in the weathering process of soil. Rock magnetism analysis showed that the major magnetic carriers in the weakly weathered soil profiles are magnetite and/or maghemite, and the highly developed soil profiles are generally enriched in magnetite/maghemite grains of pedogenic origin and the magnetically hard haematite, indicating that the magnetic component was transformed from a ferrimagnetic phase (magnetite) to antiferromagnetic phase (hematite) during pedogenic development. Results indicated that some of the magnetic parameters of soils, in this case χfd, can be useful for pedogenic comparisons and age correlations in the weathering sequence of soil. It is thus suggested that multiparameter rock magnetic investigations represent a more powerful approach for pedogenesis.     

Effect of calco-magnesian amendment on the mineral weathering abilities of bacterial communities in acidic and silicate-rich soils

Liming of forest ecosystem is recognized to increase nutrients availability in soil and water and to enhance the biomass and bacterial activities in soil. However, little studies have investigated on change induced on bacterial ability to alter silicate mineral after soil liming. Thus, this study is carried out in experimental conditions using podzol collected in the winter (2007), spring and summer (2008) in small forest catchments in Vosges Mountains amended in 2003 by dolostone and limestone. Bacterial communities, extracted from various horizons of these soils amended or not, were put in contact with a phyllosilicate (phlogopite as sole source of Mg and Fe) in miniaturized bioassays in aerobic conditions. A weathering phenotype was determined through the quantification of (i) protons and organic acids released in assay solution by bacteria (ii) iron leached from phlogopite lattice into solution by bacteria and (iii) the carbon source consumption (i.e. glucose). These results were then compared to empirical model based on chemical leaching experiments realized in the same conditions in order to simulate the processes involved. In parallel, the carbon source utilization patterns of bacteria were investigated in order to discriminate the bacterial communities from amended and non-amended soil horizons. The results indicate that (1) the total bacterial biomass was unaffected by the Ca–Mg amendment, whereas the cultivable bacterial biomass increased after the amendment, and (2) the weathering and the carbon source utilization patterns of bacterial communities differs from one soil horizon to another and among soil types. The metabolic profiles analyzed indicated significant differences in organic C substrate usage depending on season and Ca–Mg amendment. Bacterial communities, extracted from the amended soil, are enable greater iron leaching compared to those found in the control soil, suggesting a greater release of organic acids and/or a more highly chelating organic acid release. The process developed by bacteria to alter the phillosilicate is complexolysis. We conclude that the Ca–Mg amendment had a positive effect on the functional richness of bacterial communities extracted from soil and on their potential to weather minerals that was present after several years.     

Impact of climate and related weathering processes on the authigenesis of clay minerals: Examples from circum-Baikal region,Siberia

The widely outcropping igneous and metamorphic rocks of the circum-Baikal region all contain illite and chlorite resulting from early alteration of primary minerals. These rocks were deeply weathered and leached, mainly to kaolinite, under the warm and mostly wet Upper-Cretaceous and Palaeogene climates. During the following severely dry and cold Pleistocene episodes, the glacier cover was restricted, allowing the formation of permafrost, which is still several hundred metres thick in the northern Baikal region, while the lowlands of the central and southern regions belong to the so-called “sporadic permafrost area”. The lack of glacial abrasion during the cryo-arid climate preserved somehow the weathering products of the previous warm periods that presently crop out next to the relics of the periglacial Pleistocene weathering. These relict deposits derived from the same substrate rocks as those weathered during the warm and wet climate, but they differ in the clay composition with the occurrence of a montmorillonite-type smectite that is dominant in some sites.     

Red soils with white net-like veins and their climate significance in south China

The microstructure, particle size distribution, mineral and chemical compositions of both the white net-like veins and the red matrix of the Xuancheng laterite soil section in Anhui, south China, in the middle to lower reaches of the Yangtze River, were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF), polarized light microscopy observation, and particle size distribution analysis. There was more quartz while less clay minerals in the white veins relative to the red matrix. In particle size distribution patterns the more abundant 5-20 μm particle size component of the white veins resulted from their higher quartz content. Discrepancy in degree of weathering between the white veins and the red matrix was derived from the depletion of Fe₂O₃ (total) and MnO₂ and the relative accumulation of SiO₂ in the white veins. White veins across the lithological layers and inclusions of relict red matrix material in the white veins indicated that the net-like soils originated from an initial uniform red soil. The white spots or veins were derived from the long-term modification of the pre-existing soil or concurrent weathering soils. Hydrodynamic conditions of the groundwater exerted influence on the formation of white veins. The formation process of the white net-like veins was different from that of the red matrix, suggesting that the white vein materials reflected a hydrological imprint upon the result of these conditions. The net-like soils in south China were compatible to the mottled soils in Africa, Australia, India, and Brazil. However, much more intense depletion of Fe oxide and much better developed white veins in the net-like soils of south China suggest probably even warmer and more humid palaeoclimatic conditions relative to those in Africa, Australia, India, and Brazil during the period.     

皖南土壤和烟叶中矿质元素含量与烟叶焦甜香特色风格的关系

对皖南焦甜香感强度不同的12个烤烟样品中10种矿质元素及其植烟土壤中10种矿质元素的含量进行了测定和分析。结果表明:皖南大部分植烟土壤速效P含量适中,速效K含量较高,不同焦甜香感烤烟的植烟土壤中矿质元素的含量没有明显的差异。与优质烤烟相比,皖南不同焦甜香感强度的烟叶中Mn、Cu和Zn含量适中,K、Ca、Fe和Mg含量偏低。在烟叶所含的10种矿质元素中,在C3F等级烟叶焦甜香感"中"的烟叶中Ca、Cu、Fe和Zn含量显著低于焦甜香感"中-"的烟叶。因此,土壤和烟叶中矿质元素的含量对烟叶焦甜香感强度的影响较小,并不是引起烟叶焦甜香感强度差异的主要原因。     

Mineralization rate of C-labelled dissolved organic matter from leaf litter in soils of a weathering chronosequence

During the processes of primary succession and soil development, large stocks of organic C with very long residence times accumulate in many soils. Soluble organic C adsorbed by soils may contribute to the stock of organic C accumulating during soil development. We determined whether the mineralization rate of water-soluble organic C and the insoluble residue from ¹⁴C-labelled leaf litter added to soils from a weathering chronosequence decrease as soil age and adsorption capacity increase. The soils were formed on mudflows of andesitic material deposited about 75, 255, 616 y ago, and another older but undetermined time before this study. The percentage of the DOC adsorbed by the soils increased with age. After 1 year of incubation there were no significant differences in the mineralization rates of DOC added to soils of different ages. The DOC appeared to be comprised of two fractions, one that comprises about 32% of the total that mineralized with a half decay time of 0.02 y (7 d) and a second fraction comprising 68% with a half decay time of about 1.6 y. Consequently, the slowly mineralized fraction of the soluble C contributed to the accumulation of slowly mineralized C in the soil. Both the slowly and rapidly mineralized fractions of the insoluble residue decomposed more slowly than the corresponding fractions in DOC. We found no support for the idea that increased adsorption capacity due to weathering resulted in protection of soluble organic C from microbial mineralization.     

Geogenesis, pedogenesis, and multiple causality in the formation of texture-contrast soils

Coarse-over-fine vertical texture contrasts (VTC) are common in soils and weathering profiles in a variety of environmental settings, including many where inheritance or surficial processes alone cannot account for them. A multiple causality model is presented here which shows that texture contrasts can form in response to a combination of ubiquitous phenomena. There are six key elements: downward translocation by water, erosional winnowing, soil mixing by bioturbation, the tendency for surface clay additions to be mobilized while subsurface clays are more likely to remain in place, and biological facilitation of moisture flux. No element alone is sufficient to create a VTC, but not all are necessary in any given regolith. The model is illustrated by application to case studies in the Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas; ridgetops in eastern Kentucky; the lower coastal plain of North Carolina; and the upper coastal plain of east Texas. The implications for interpretation of soils, paleosols, and weathering profiles is that the presence of a textural contrast, by itself, does not connote any particular set of geogenic or pedogenic processs or controls. Texture contrasts may be geogenic, pedogenic, or both. Given the widespread occurrence of the mechanisms of the multiple causality model, vertical texture contrasts are inevitable.     

皖南第四纪红土伊利石结晶度值与风化强度的关系

对安徽宣城市宣州和郎溪两地第四纪红土黏土矿物组合和伊利石结晶度进行研究,探讨其对第四纪红土形成环境的指示意义。结果表明,两地第四纪红土黏土矿物的组合基本相似:剖面上部末次冰期下蜀黄土层(黄棕色土层)黏土矿物主要为伊利石、高岭石和2∶1型的蛭石;均质红土和网纹红土以伊利石和高岭石为主,无蛭石;网纹层下部出现伊利石-蒙脱石混层矿物。根据伊利石的X射线衍射(XRD)峰,获得伊利石结晶度(Illite crystallinity,IC)值,可以反映伊利石结晶程度。两地第四纪红土同类层次的IC值较接近。宣州和郎溪剖面黄棕色土的IC值平均为0.463,均质红土为0.599,网纹红土为0.726。全剖面样品IC值与风化强度指标呈显著负相关,充分说明红土IC值可有效地反映红土的风化强度。第四纪红土剖面从黄棕色土→均质红土→网纹红土,IC值升高,伊利石结晶变差,反映了红土风化强度增加,形成的气候环境更加湿热。     

Effect of Bacillus subtilis on granite weathering: A laboratory experiment

We performed a comparative experiment to investigate: (1) how the ubiquitous soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis weathers granite; and (2) which granite-forming minerals weather more rapidly via biological processes. Batch system experiments (granite specimen in a 500 ml solution including NaCl, glucose, yeast extract and bacteria B. subtilis at 27 °C) were carried out for 30 days. Granite surfaces were observed by SEM before and after the experiment. B. subtilis had a strong influence on granite weathering by forming pits. There were 2.4 times as many pits and micropores were 2.3 times wider in granite exposed to B. subtilis when compared with bacteria-free samples. B. subtilis appear to preferentially select an optimum place to adhere to the mineral and dissolve essential elements from the mineral to live. Plagioclase was more vulnerable to bacterial weathering than biotite among the granite composing minerals.     

Implications of clay mineralogy to the weathering and chemistry of AP horizons of ando soils in Japan

The clay mineralogy of 22 samples of the Ap horizons of Ando soils was determined by a combination of methods. Of these samples, 15 did and 7 did not contain allophane and imogolite. Opaline silica was found in 4 samples, whereas aluminum—humus complexes, iron oxides and layer silicates were found in all samples. The presence of allophane and imogolite and the absence of opaline silica in a few Ap horizons was related to mixing of A₁ horizons and subsoils by cultivation and to lower supplies of organic matter relative to the amounts of aluminum released from volcanic ash by weathering. The contents of 2:1 and 2:1:1 layer silicates and their intergrades were larger in soils in which quartz predominated in fine fractions. It was inferred that aluminum bound with humus and in allophane-like constituents, rather than aluminum in allophane and imogolite, is important in reactions with phosphate and fluoride.     

Rates and processes of mineral weathering in soils developed on greywackes and shales in the Southern Uplands of Scotland

Critical loads of acid deposition are exceeded in parts of the Southern Uplands of Scotland where base saturation in the topmost mineral horizons in many soils developed on greywackes and shales is <10%. Long-term weathering rates calculated by the elemental depletion method from nine soil profiles across a 200 km transect indicate losses of base cations in the range 4–31 meq m^?2a^?1. In every profile the most depleted base cation is Mg which is directly related to the weathering of chlorite which is often present at the 20–40% level in basal horizons but is often completely weathered out in E horizons. The second most depleted base cation is usually K, and this is clearly related to the weathering of mica to a vermiculitic mineral which, in the clay fractions, contains polymeric hydroxyaluminium in the interlamellar space if the soil pH is >4.3. The base cation least depleted is Ca and this is in sharp contrast to current weathering rates calculated from input-output budgets where Ca is the main base cation being exported. This discrepancy may be due to a contribution to the output from easily soluble Ca-bearing minerals (e.g. calcite) in narrow veins and fractures in the bedrock.     

Effects of water amendment on basal and substrate-induced respiration rates of mineral soils

Summary We studied the effects of amending soils with different volumes of water or glucose solution on respiration rates measured as CO₂ evolution. Basal respiration was not significantly affected by the volume of water amendment, but substrate-induced respiration in static soil solutions was significantly reduced by increasing water contents. Inhibition of substrate-induced respiration was removed by continuously agitating the incubation vessels. Estimates of substrate-induced respiration rates for six soils differed markedly, depending on whether the vessels were stationary or agitated during the incubation. Agitation allowed increased discrimination between substrate-induced respiration rates for the soils, while static incubation only differentiated the soil with the highest substrate-induced respiration rate from the other soils.     

Effect of crop rotation and residue management on properties of cracking clay soils under irrigated cotton-based farming systems of new south wales

The effects of planting cereal or leguminous crops in rotation with irrigated cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) on the properties of cracking clay (swelling) soils in the Macquarie and Namoi Valleys of New South Wales, Australia were evaluated during the summer of 1992–3. The observations were made on commercial farmers' fields. The soil properties evaluated were the particle size distribution, the dispersion index, the plastic limit, the percentage of coarse (particle diameter 212–2000 μm) and fine (particle diameter 53-212 μm) particulate soil organic matter, soil respiration rate, soil reactivity, soil aggregate density, pH, nitrate-N and exchangeable Ca, Mg, K and Na. In general, the planting of rotation crops decreased the dispersion index, plastic limit and soil aggregate density, and increased the amount of coarse particulate organic matter. Planting rotation crops also resulted in significantly higher clay and lower silt contents in the Macquarie Valley, and significantly higher soil respiration in the Namoi Valley. Soil pH, nitrate-N and exchangeable cation concentrations were not significantly affected by planting rotation crops in the Macquarie Valley, whereas exchangeable Na was increased in the Namoi Valley. The retention of crop residues in situ, compared with burning crop residues, decreased the dispersion index, plastic limit and aggregate density, and increased the amount of coarse particulate soil organic matter at all measured depths of the Macquarie Valley. The retention of crop residues in the Namoi Valley decreased the plastic limit and dispersion index only in the 0–50 mm depth range, whereas burning crop residues increased exchangeable K at all depths. In general, planting rotation crops and the retention of crop residues had greater beneficial effects on the soil physical properties in the Macquarie Valley than in the Namoi Valley, and in the topsoil compared with the subsoil. These differences are attributed to a shorter rotation interval in the Namoi Valley, smaller amounts of coarse particulate soil organic matter in the subsoil, and differing soil types in the two valleys. In the Namoi Valley the coarse organic matter produced by leguminous crops appeared to be more effective in promoting structural stability than that from non-leguminous crops, although no such difference was observed in the Macquarie Valley.     

坡度与种植方式对紫色土侵蚀与养分流失的影响研究

在涪陵区水土保持监测分站内建立6个径流小区,对紫色土坡耕地水土流失进行试验监测,结果表明:各小区径流量、产沙量总体随降雨量的增大而增大.自然生态修复措施防治水土流失效果显著,3.66 m3的径流量仅有0.41 kg·m3的产沙量,可有效防治紫色土坡耕地的水土流失.采用顺坡耕作措施的小区径流量与降雨量达显著正相关,而产沙量与降雨量未显著相关.径流量和产沙量大小顺序均为25°坡耕地>20°坡耕地>10°坡耕地>15°坡耕地,在15°耕地上径流量与产沙量均为最小,但15°是否是涪陵区最适宜的耕地坡度,仍有待今后收集更多的降雨资料加以分析说明.对一次强降雨进行养分流失观测,养分流失量与径流量及产沙量大小顺序基本一致.开发建设项目弃土弃渣监测点径流量与产沙量均大大高于其他小区,说明开发建设水土保持项目中防治水土流失的重要性.