Holocene Soil Development on Till and Outwash Inferred from Lake-Sediment Geochemistry in Michigan and Wisconsin

2002 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly A. Ewing ◽  
Edward A. Nater
Keyword(s):  
Lake Sediment ◽  
Ammonium Oxalate ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Sediment Geochemistry ◽  
Soil Mineralogy ◽  
Significant Events ◽  
Complex Picture ◽  
Oxalate Extraction ◽  
Water Holding

AbstractTwo geochemical techniques from soil mineralogy were used with lake sediment to reconstruct soil development in the catchments of two lakes—one on outwash and the other on till—in the Great Lakes region. A sodium pyrophosphate extraction provides information about leaching of exchangeable and organically complexed cations from terrestrial sources, while an acidified ammonium oxalate extraction removes mineral materials without well-developed crystalline structure that are indicative of podzolization. More evidence of pedogenesis is preserved in sediment of the lake on outwash—likely a result of greater retention of material within the soil profile in the catchment on till. This difference between the records suggests that excessively well-drained (leaky) catchments may provide better records of soil development than those with higher water-holding capacity. Evidence of acidification and podzolization appeared first at the lake on till and 4500 years later at the lake on outwash. Both records reveal a late Holocene intensification of weathering that coincided with a regional climatic change to greater moisture availability. The variability in weathering rates observed presents a more complex picture of weathering than the simple exponential functions often assumed in chronosequence studies. Use of lake sediment records provides better temporal resolution of significant events in soil formation than could be achieved using a chronosequence approach.

scholarly journals INSIGHT INTO PHARMACEUTICAL IMPORTANCE OF BRYOPHYTES

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 84-88
Author(s):  
Greeshma G.M ◽  
Manoj G.S ◽  
Murugan K
Keyword(s):  
Arid Regions ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Economic Importance ◽  
Peat Moss ◽  
Biotic Factor ◽  
Plant Parts ◽  
Average Size ◽  
Water Holding ◽  
Insight Into

Historically, Bryophytes were accounted to be a monophyletic group and were placed in an inclusive Bryophyta. Some species are aquatic though some can adapt and live in arid regions. Bryophytes size ranges from microscopic to 12 inches in length, the average size is between 0.5 – 2 inches long and colors vary from green to black and sometimes colorless. Bryophytes plays a vital role in the biosphere even their size is insignificant. As a biotic factor in the environment, they provide food for numerous herbivorous birds and animals. They prevent soil erosion by carpeting the soil. Bryophytes cause the outer portion of rock to slowly crumble as they grow with lichens on rock surfaces. And because of it they contribute and help to soil formation. When mixed with the soil, bryophytes increase the water-holding capacity of the soil and the amount of organic matter in the soil. Some bryophytes like sphagnum or peat moss has some economicimportance. It is used as packing material for breakable or fragile objects such as figurines and dinnerware’s. It is also used as packing materials for transporting plants and plant parts, since sphagnum holds water and hence prevent plants from drying during transport. As a whole, bryophytes are of little economic importance to man.

Soil Development Parameters in the Absence of a Chronosequence in a Glaciated Basin of the White Mountains, California-Nevada

1993 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry W. Swanson ◽  
Deborah L. Elliott-Fisk ◽  
Randel J. Southard
Keyword(s):  
Soil Formation ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Selection Strategy ◽  
Soil Parameters ◽  
Surface Erosion ◽  
Glacial Deposits ◽  
White Mountains ◽  
Soil Age ◽  
Exposure Ages

AbstractDetailed mapping and provisional numerical age determinations of glacial deposits in the South Chiatovich Creek Basin of the White Mountains provide an opportunity to evaluate the ability of conventional soil parameters to discriminate first- and second-order glacial events. Sampling and analytical procedures were designed to minimize variation in climate and lithology. When lithology and climate are similar among sites, age trends are more pronounced in both field and chemical soil properties. Profile development indices (PDIs), adjusted by removing melanization and pH, systematically increase with greater soil age, and discriminate first-order, but not second-order, glacial events. The best-fit curve for adjusted PDI data assumes an exponential form and suggests that the rate of soil formation in this region decreases over time, similar to the rate of weathering-rind development. Variation in eolian influx and surface erosion, which are dominant processes affecting soils of the basin, cause major uncertainties in establishing soil age and, hence, soil-development rates. Even on the youngest glacial deposits, soil age is probably significantly less than deposit age due to these geomorphic processes. Soil and weathering parameters imply that these field techniques can be inexpensively employed to define relative chronologies and to assess surface degradation and its impact on surface exposure ages. Results from this study indicate that site-selection strategy for establishing glacial chronologies should be reevaluated. Working with stable residual bedrock surfaces and associated low-relief outwash fans and terraces may prove more productive than focusing on relatively unstable moraine surfaces in tectonically active mountain systems.

scholarly journals Comparison of the Ammonium Oxalate Extraction of Fertilizer for K2O, Method 983.02, with the Ammonium Citrate/EDTA Extraction, Method 993.31

2003 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 640-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie F Newlon
Keyword(s):  
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid ◽  
Extraction Procedure ◽  
Ammonium Oxalate ◽  
T Test ◽  
Ammonium Citrate ◽  
Official Method ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Oxalate Extraction ◽  
Edta Extraction

Abstract The direct available method for phosphorus in fertilizers, Method 960.03, is an Official Method for extraction of both P2O5 and K2O. Because K2O is much more soluble and easier to extract than P2O5, the conditions of the extraction procedure are set for efficient extraction of P2O5, and the extraction of K2O is, in effect, a bonus. In 1993, a modified extraction procedure, using an extractant of ammonium citrate/ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) solution, was evaluated for P2O5 and then collaboratively studied. This now-modified extraction procedure for phosphorus is Official Method 993.31, which is used extensively as an alternative to Method 960.03 for phosphorus because it is less labor-intensive. Method 993.31 was also evaluated in our laboratory for K2O extraction, but it was never formally collaboratively studied for K2O. To demonstrate the suitability of Method 993.31 as an extraction procedure for K2O, as well as P2O5 in fertilizers, Method 993.31 extraction for K2O was compared with Method 983.02, the traditional ammonium oxalate extraction procedure for K2O. A wide range of fertilizer samples was extracted by using both procedures. The t-test for samples containing <30% K2O had a t-value of 1.23 and a probability of 0.22, which indicates there was no significant difference in the results obtained by the 2 extraction methods. The t-test for samples containing >30% K2O had a t-value of 0.30 and a probability of 0.77, also indicating no significant difference. It is recommended that Method 983.02 be modified to include the ammonium citrate/EDTA extraction procedure as an additional option for extraction of K2O from commercial fertilizers.

scholarly journals Chemical dispersants and pre-treatments to determine clay in soils with different mineralogy

2011 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 1589-1596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristiane Rodrigues ◽  
Virlei Álvaro de Oliveira ◽  
Pedro Marques da Silveira ◽  
Glenio Guimarães Santos
Keyword(s):  
Ammonium Oxalate ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Mechanical Action ◽  
Coarse Sand ◽  
Lithium Hydroxide ◽  
Parent Material ◽  
Formation Processes ◽  
Soil Mineralogy ◽  
Chemical Dispersant ◽  
Pre Treatment

Knowledge of the soil physical properties, including the clay content, is of utmost importance for agriculture. The behavior of apparently similar soils can differ in intrinsic characteristics determined by different formation processes and nature of the parent material. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of separate or combined pre-treatments, dispersion methods and chemical dispersant agents to determine clay in some soil classes, selected according to their mineralogy. Two Brazilian Oxisols, two Alfisols and one Mollisol with contrasting mineralogy were selected. Different treatments were applied: chemical substances as dispersants (lithium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, and hexametaphosphate); pre-treatment with dithionite, ammonium oxalate, and hydrogen peroxide to eliminate organic matter; and coarse sand as abrasive and ultrasound, to test their mechanical action. The conclusion was drawn that different treatments must be applied to determine clay, in view of the soil mineralogy. Lithium hydroxide was not efficient to disperse low-CEC electropositive soils and very efficient in dispersing high-CEC electronegative soils. The use of coarse sand as an abrasive increased the clay content of all soils and in all treatments in which dispersion occurred, with or without the use of chemical dispersants. The efficiency of coarse sand is not the same for all soil classes.

Hornblende etching and quartz/feldspar ratios as weathering and soil development indicators in some Michigan soils

2004 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie R. Mikesell ◽  
Randall J. Schaetzl ◽  
Michael A. Velbel
Keyword(s):  
Climatic Factors ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Surficial Sediments ◽  
Time Duration ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Relative Age ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Weathered Soils ◽  
Outwash Plain

Weathering can be used as a highly effective relative age indicator. One such application involves etching of hornblende grains in soils. Etching increases with time (duration) and decreases with depth in soils and surficial sediments. Other variables, related to intensity of weathering and soil formation, are generally held as constant as possible so as to only minimally influence the time–etching relationship. Our study focuses on one of the variables usually held constant–climate–by examining hornblende etching and quartz/feldspar ratios in soils of similar age but varying degrees of development due to climatic factors. We examined the assumption that the degree of etching varies as a function of soil development, even in soils of similar age. The Spodosols we studied form a climate-mediated development sequence on a 13,000-yr-old outwash plain in Michigan. Their pedogenic development was compared to weathering-related data from the same soils. In general, soils data paralleled weathering data. Hornblende etching was most pronounced in the A and E horizons, and decreased rapidly with depth. Quartz/feldspar ratios showed similar but more variable trends. In the two most weakly developed soils, the Q/F ratio was nearly constant with depth, implying that this ratio may not be as effective a measure as are etching data for minimally weathered soils. Our data indicate that hornblende etching should not be used as a stand-alone relative age indicator, especially in young soils and in contexts where the degree of pedogenic variability on the geomorphic surface is large.

scholarly journals Cryoturbation leads to iron-organic carbon associations along a permafrost soil chronosequence in northern Alaska

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Joss ◽  
Monique Patzner ◽  
Markus Maisch ◽  
Carsten Mueller ◽  
Andreas Kappler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Soil Development ◽  
Permafrost Soil ◽  
Reactive Iron ◽  
Spatially Resolved ◽  
Co Precipitation ◽  
Thaw Lakes

In permafrost soils, substantial amounts of organic carbon (OC) are potentially protected from microbial degradation and transformation into greenhouse gases by association with reactive iron (Fe) minerals. As permafrost environments respond to climate change, increased drainage of thaw lakes in permafrost regions is predicted. Soils will subsequently develop on these drained thaw lakes, but the role of Fe-OC associations in future OC stabilization during this predicted soil development is unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, we have examined Fe-OC associations in organic, cryoturbated and mineral horizons along a 5500-year chronosequence of drained thaw lake basins in Utqiaġvik, Alaska. By applying chemical extractions, we found that ~17 % of the total OC content in cryoturbated horizons is associated with reactive Fe minerals, compared to ~10 % in organic or mineral horizons. As soil development advances, the total stocks of Fe-associated OC more than double within the first 50 years after thaw lake drainage, because of increased storage of Fe-associated OC in cryoturbated horizons (from 8 to 75 % of the total Fe-associated OC stock). Spatially-resolved nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry showed that OC is primarily associated with Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides which were identified by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy as ferrihydrite. High OC:Fe mass ratios (>0.22) indicate that Fe-OC associations are formed via co-precipitation, chelation and aggregation. These results demonstrate that, given the proposed enhanced drainage of thaw lakes under climate change, OC is increasingly incorporated and stabilized by the association with reactive Fe minerals as a result of soil formation and increased cryoturbation.

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