Surface liming effects on soil radiation attenuation properties

Purpose

This study investigates the effects of surface liming on soil attenuation radiation properties. For this, measurements of soil chemical attributes (pH, organic carbon, H+Al, Al³⁺, Ca²⁺, and Mg²⁺) and attenuation radiation parameters (mass attenuation coefficient, μ_m, atomic and electronic cross sections, σ_a and σ_e, effective atomic number and electron density, Z_eff and N_el) were carried out. This aim was motivated by the fact that possible μ_m variation might cause as well variation in the determination of soil physical properties.

Materials and methods

The studied soil, classified as a Dystrudept sity-clay, is located in South Brazil. The trial consisted of five stripes, one of them under pasture and the remaining under no-till system (NTS). Lime rates of 0, 10, 15, and 20 t ha^?1 were broadcast on the NTS soil surface. Disturbed soil samples were collected 30 months after liming at the top (0–10 cm) and subsoil (10–20 cm) layers. Soil chemical attributes were characterized following standard experimental procedures. The soil oxide composition, obtained by EDXRF analysis, was used to calculate μ_m for ²⁴¹Am and ¹³⁷Cs photon energies with XCOM computer code. μ_m values were employed to calculate σ_a, σ_e, Z_eff, and N_el and to predict variations in soil bulk density (ρ) and total porosity (φ).

Results and discussion

Surface liming notably increased contents of soil pH, Ca²⁺, and Mg²⁺ while reduced H+Al and Al³⁺ at the top soil layer, where μ_m, σ_a, σ_e, and Z_eff were also increased with the lime rates. However, at the subsoil layer, liming neither lessened soil acidity nor induced remarkable changes in the attenuation parameters. When using ¹³⁷Cs photon energy, incoherent scattering totally dominated over the radiation interaction processes whereas photoelectric absorption and coherent scattering substantially contributed when ²⁴¹Am photon energy was used. Therefore, the increasing in soil attenuation parameters at the top soil layer was more accentuated considering ²⁴¹Am than ¹³⁷Cs photon energy. Variation in μ_m caused considerable variation in ρ and φ only for ²⁴¹Am photon energy.

Conclusions

The findings regarding the effect of μ_m variation induced by liming on the determination of soil physical properties are extremely relevant because traditionally, in the soil science area, μ_m values are calculated without considering any chemical modification to which the soil can be submitted. Bearing in mind that ρ and φ are important parameters from the agricultural and environmental points of view, not representative measurements of μ_m can lead to biased values of ρ and φ.

     

Characterization of kaolinite in the hardsetting clay fraction using atomic force microscopy,X-ray diffraction,and the Rietveld method

Purpose

Brazilian soils that present extremely hard sub-superficial horizons when dry and friable when humid are similar to the Australian and South African hardsetting horizons whose hardness can be mainly related to low crystallinity. Studies involving refinement by the Rietveld method with X-ray diffraction (RM-XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and their relation have not been carried out in hardsetting horizon soils. Thus, the objective of this study is to obtain information about the kaolinite in the hardsetting horizon of a Yellow Argisol clay fraction, taking into consideration the results of isomorphic substitution, crystallite average size, and microstrains, relating them to particle image analysis regarding their morphology and size.

Materials and methods

Soil samples were collected in the hardsetting horizon of a Yellow Argisol in the Coastal Tablelands region, which covers the whole Brazilian Northeast coast and part of the Southeast region. The sample was powdered, sieved, and submitted to dispersion and physical fractioning process by sedimentation. The clay fraction was analyzed by RM-XRD, AFM, and SEM techniques.

Results and discussion

The RM-XRD provided improvement of indices with isomorphic substitutions in the goethite [Fe_0.70Al_0.30O(OH)], kaolinite [Al_1.44Fe_0.56Si₂O₅(OH)₄], and halloysite [Al_1.42Fe_0.58Si₂O₅(OH)₄]; 29 nm crystallite average size; 5 × 10^?3 microstrain; and 49.5% kaolinite. AFM analyses indicated particle average size from 80 to 250 nm and average height from 60 to 80 nm. By relating this data, it was possible to estimate that the particles under analysis are kaolinite composed of 3 to 9 crystallites and stacking of 88 to 112 layers.

Conclusions

The process, analyses, and comparisons such as crystallographic and morphologic information about the kaolinite mineral particles contribute to the comprehension of the hardsetting horizon soil nature as well as other soils that present minerals with a high degree of isomorphic substitution.