Abstract: | The sorption of phosphate by underwater soils rich in carbonate The phosphate sorption isotherms for carbonate rich under water soils (Unterwasserboden) can frequently be linearized by a modified Freundlich-isotherm when one assumes that, because of previously sorbed phosphate, the concentration of the equilibrium soil solution, P1,0 is greater than 0. However, in many cases, the character of the phosphate sorption can be adequately determined with only one phosphate addition (Ps,500). Both methods show that for dried samples from under water soils, the samples from reduced horizons have a higher P sorption than for the associated oxidized horizons. This can be explained by the presence of very sorption active ferrihydrite which has precipitated from previously biologically reduced material. |