Some observations on the desorption and distribution behaviour of copper with soil components

The ability of copper adsorbed by soil components to desorb back into solution was studied by means of experiments using radioactive ⁶⁴Cu. It was demonstrated that the amounts of copper which can be readily desorbed from soil components are very small. A dialysis equilibration technique was used to examine the distribution of adsorbed copper between individual materials in a multi-component system. Where only adsorption of copper was involved, the distribution of copper between soil materials was found to agree with predictions based on adsorption studies with individual materials. However, where desorption was involved, as in the experiments on the redistribution of copper between components after an initial adsorption, the results were strongly governed by the poor reversibility of copper adsorption. It is clear that desorption or lack of desorption is very important in affecting plant availability of indigenous or added soil copper and in controlling the distribution of copper added to soils.