Soil chemistry is the study of the chemical characteristics of soil. Soil chemistry is affected by mineral composition, organic matter and environmental factors. In the early 1870s a consulting chemist to the Royal Agricultural Society in England, named J. Thomas Way, performed many experiments on how soils exchange ions, and is considered the father of soil chemistry. [1] Other scientists who contributed to this branch of ecology include Edmund Ruffin, and Linus Pauling. [1]
Until the late 1960s, soil chemistry focused primarily on chemical reactions in the soil that contribute to pedogenesis or that affect plant growth. Since then, concerns have grown about environmental pollution, organic and inorganic soil contamination and potential ecological health and environmental health risks. Consequently, the emphasis in soil chemistry has shifted from pedology and agricultural soil science to an emphasis on environmental soil science.
A knowledge of environmental soil chemistry is paramount to predicting the fate of contaminants, as well as the processes by which they are initially released into the soil. Once a chemical is exposed to the soil environment, myriad chemical reactions can occur that may increase or decrease contaminant toxicity. These reactions include adsorption/desorption, precipitation, polymerization, dissolution, hydrolysis, hydration, complexation and oxidation/reduction. These reactions are often disregarded by scientists and engineers involved with environmental remediation. Understanding these processes enable us to better predict the fate and toxicity of contaminants and provide the knowledge to develop scientifically correct, and cost-effective remediation strategies.
Soil structure refers to the manner in which these individual soil particles are grouped together to form clusters of particles called aggregates. This is determined by the types of soil formation, parent material, and texture. Soil structure can be influenced by a wide variety of biota as well as management methods by humans.
The classification of soil structural forms is based largely on shape.
The interactions of the soil's micropores and macropores are important to soil chemistry, as they allow for the provision of water and gaseous elements to the soil and the surrounding atmosphere. Macropores [3] help transport molecules and substances in and out of the micropores. Micropores are comprised within the aggregates themselves.
The atmosphere contains three main gases, namely oxygen, carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen. In the atmosphere, oxygen is 20%, nitrogen is 79% and CO2 is 0.15% to 0.65% by volume. CO2 increases with the increase in the depth of soil because of decomposition of accumulated organic matter and abundance of plant roots. The presence of oxygen in the soil is important because it helps in breaking down insoluble rocky mass into soluble minerals and organic humification. Air in the soil is composed of gases that are present in the atmosphere, but not in the same proportions. These gases facilitate chemical reactions in microorganisms. Accumulation of soluble nutrients in the soil makes it more productive. If the soil is deficient in oxygen, microbial activity is slowed down or eliminated. Important factors controlling the soil atmosphere are temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind/aeration and rainfall.
Soil texture influences the soil chemistry pertaining to the soil's ability to maintain its structure, the restriction of water flow and the contents of the particles in the soil. Soil texture considers all particle types and a soil texture triangle is a chart that can be used to calculate the percentages of each particle type adding up to total 100% for the soil profile. These soil separates differ not only in their sizes but also in their bearing on some of the important factors affecting plant growth such as soil aeration, work ability, movement and availability of water and nutrients.
Sand particles range in size (about 0.05–2 mm). [4] Sand is the most coarse of the particle groups. Sand has the largest pores and soil particles of the particle groups. It also drains the most easily. These particles become more involved in chemical reactions when coated with clay.
Silt particles range in size (about 0.002–0.5 mm). Silt pores are considered a medium in size compared with the other particle groups. Silt has a texture consistency of flour. Silt particles allow water and air to pass readily, yet retain moisture for crop growth. Silty soil contains sufficient quantities of nutrients, both organic and inorganic.
Clay has particles smallest in size (about <0.002 mm) of the particle groups. Clay also has the smallest pores which give it a greater porosity, and it does not drain well. Clay has a sticky texture when wet. Some kinds can grow and dissipate, or in other words shrink and swell.
Loam is a combination of sand, silt and clay that encompasses soils. It can be named based on the primary particles in the soil composition, ex. sandy loam, clay loam, silt loam, etc.
Biota are organisms that, along with organic matter, help comprise the biological system of the soil. The vast majority of biological activity takes place near the soil surface, usually in the A horizon of a soil profile. Biota rely on inputs of organic matter in order to sustain themselves and increase population sizes. In return, they contribute nutrients to the soil, typically after it has been cycled in the soil trophic food web.
With the many different interactions that take place, biota can largely impact their environment physically, chemically, and biologically (Pavao-Zuckerman, 2008). A prominent factor that helps to provide some degree of stability with these interactions is biodiversity, a key component of all ecological communities. Biodiversity allows for a consistent flow of energy through trophic levels and strongly influences the structure of ecological communities in the soil.
Types of living soil biota can be divided into categories of plants (flora), animals (fauna), and microorganisms. Plants play a role in soil chemistry by exchanging nutrients with microorganisms and absorbing nutrients, creating concentration gradients of cations and anions. In addition to this, the differences in water potential created by plants influence water movement in soil, which affects the form and transportation of various particles. Vegetative cover on the soil surface greatly reduces erosion, which in turn prevents compaction and helps to maintain aeration in the soil pore space, providing oxygen and carbon to the biota and cation exchange sites that depend on it (Peri et al., 2022). Animals are essential to soil chemistry, as they regulate the cycling of nutrients and energy into different forms. This is primarily done through food webs. Some types of soil animals can be found below.
Soil microbes play a major role in a multitude of biological and chemical activities that take place in soil. These microorganisms are said to make up around 1,000–10,000 kg of biomass per hectare in some soils (García-Sánchez, 2016). They are mostly recognized for their association with plants. The most well-known example of this is mycorrhizae, which exchange carbon for nitrogen with plant roots in a symbiotic relationship. Additionally, microbes are responsible for the majority of respiration that takes place in the soil, which has implications for the release of gases like methane and nitrous oxide from soil (giving it significance in discussion of climate change) (Frouz et al., 2020). Given the significance of the effects of microbes on their environment, the conservation and promotion of microbial life is often desired by many plant growers, conservationists, and ecologists.
Soil organic matter is the largest source of nutrients and energy in a soil. Its inputs strongly influence key soil factors such as types of biota, pH, and even soil order. Soil organic matter is often strategically applied by plant growers because of its ability to improve soil structure, supply nutrients, manage pH, increase water retention, and regulate soil temperature (which directly affects water dynamics and biota).
The chief elements found in humus, the product of organic matter decomposition in soil, are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulphur and nitrogen. The important compound found in humus are carbohydrates, phosphoric acid, some organic acids, resins, urea etc. Humus is a dynamic product and is constantly changing because of its oxidation, reduction and hydrolysis; hence, it has much carbon content and less nitrogen. This material can come from a variety of sources, but often derives from livestock manure and plant residues.
Though there are many other variables, such as texture, soils that lack sufficient organic matter content are susceptible to soil degradation and drying, as there is nothing supporting the soil structure. This often leads to a decline in soil fertility and an increase in erodibility.
Other associated concepts:
Many plant nutrients in soil undergo biogeochemical cycles throughout their environment. These cycles are influenced by water, gas exchange, biological activity, immobilization, and mineralization dynamics, but each element has its own course of flow (Deemy et al., 2022). For example, nitrogen moves from an isolated gaseous form to the compounds nitrate and nitrite as it moves through soil and becomes available to plants. In comparison, an element like phosphorus transfers in mineral form, as it is contained in rock material. These cycles also greatly vary in mobility, solubility, and the rate at which they move through their natural cycles. Together, they drive all of the processes of soil chemistry.
New knowledge about the chemistry of soils often comes from studies in the laboratory, in which soil samples taken from undisturbed soil horizons in the field are used in experiments that include replicated treatments and controls. In many cases, the soil samples are air dried at ambient temperatures (e.g., 25 °C (77 °F)) and sieved to a 2 mm size prior to storage for further study. Such drying and sieving soil samples markedly disrupts soil structure, microbial population diversity, and chemical properties related to pH, oxidation-reduction status, manganese oxidation state, and dissolved organic matter; among other properties. [7] Renewed interest in recent decades has led many soil chemists to maintain soil samples in a field-moist condition and stored at 4 °C (39 °F) under aerobic conditions before and during investigations. [8]
Two approaches are frequently used in laboratory investigations in soil chemistry. The first is known as batch equilibration. The chemist adds a given volume of water or salt solution of known concentration of dissolved ions to a mass of soil (e.g., 25–mL of solution to 5–g of soil in a centrifuge tube or flask). The soil slurry then is shaken or swirled for a given amount of time (e.g., 15 minutes to many hours) to establish a steady state or equilibrium condition prior to filtering or centrifuging at high speed to separate sand grains, silt particles, and clay colloids from the equilibrated solution. [9] The filtrate or centrifugate then is analyzed using one of several methods, including ion specific electrodes, atomic absorption spectrophotometry, inductively coupled plasma spectrometry, ion chromatography, and colorimetric methods. In each case, the analysis quantifies the concentration or activity of an ion or molecule in the solution phase, and by multiplying the measured concentration or activity (e.g., in mg ion/mL) by the solution-to-soil ratio (mL of extraction solution/g soil), the chemist obtains the result in mg ion/g soil. This result based on the mass of soil allows comparisons between different soils and treatments. A related approach uses a known volume to solution to leach (infiltrate) the extracting solution through a quantity of soil in small columns at a controlled rate to simulate how rain, snow meltwater, and irrigation water pass through soils in the field. The filtrate then is analyzed using the same methods as used in batch equilibrations. [10]
Another approach to quantifying soil processes and phenomena uses in situ methods that do not disrupt the soil. as occurs when the soil is shaken or leached with an extracting soil solution. These methods usually use surface spectroscopic techniques, such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, Mössbauer spectroscopy, and X-ray spectroscopy. These approaches aim to obtain information on the chemical nature of the mineralogy and chemistry of particle and colloid surfaces, and how ions and molecules are associated with such surfaces by adsorption, complexation, and precipitation. [11]
These laboratory experiments and analyses have an advantage over field studies in that chemical mechanisms on how ions and molecules react in soils can be inferred from the data. One can draw conclusions or frame new hypotheses on similar reactions in different soils with diverse textures, organic matter contents, types of clay minerals and oxides, pH, and drainage condition. Laboratory studies have the disadvantage that they lose some of the realism and heterogeneity of undisturbed soil in the field, while gaining control and the power of extrapolation to unstudied soil. Mechanistic laboratory studies combined with more realistic, less controlled, observational field studies often yield accurate approximations of the behavior and chemistry of the soils that may be spatially heterogeneous and temporally variable. Another challenge faced by soil chemists is how microbial populations and enzyme activity in field soils may be changed when the soil is disturbed, both in the field and laboratory, particularly when soils samples are dried prior to laboratory studies and analysis. [12]
In classical soil science, humus is the dark organic matter in soil that is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal matter. It is a kind of soil organic matter. It is rich in nutrients and retains moisture in the soil. Humus is the Latin word for "earth" or "ground".
Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support the life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from soil by restricting the former term specifically to displaced soil.
Soil formation, also known as pedogenesis, is the process of soil genesis as regulated by the effects of place, environment, and history. Biogeochemical processes act to both create and destroy order (anisotropy) within soils. These alterations lead to the development of layers, termed soil horizons, distinguished by differences in color, structure, texture, and chemistry. These features occur in patterns of soil type distribution, forming in response to differences in soil forming factors.
The pedosphere is the outermost layer of the Earth that is composed of soil and subject to soil formation processes. It exists at the interface of the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere. The pedosphere is the skin of the Earth and only develops when there is a dynamic interaction between the atmosphere, biosphere, lithosphere and the hydrosphere. The pedosphere is the foundation of terrestrial life on Earth.
Tilth is a physical condition of soil, especially in relation to its suitability for planting or growing a crop. Factors that determine tilth include the formation and stability of aggregated soil particles, moisture content, degree of aeration, soil biota, rate of water infiltration and drainage. Tilth can change rapidly, depending on environmental factors such as changes in moisture, tillage and soil amendments. The objective of tillage is to improve tilth, thereby increasing crop production; in the long term, however, conventional tillage, especially plowing, often has the opposite effect, causing the soil carbon sponge to oxidize, break down and become compacted.
Soil morphology is the branch of soil science dedicated to the technical description of soil, particularly physical properties including texture, color, structure, and consistence. Morphological evaluations of soil are typically performed in the field on a soil profile containing multiple horizons.
Soil acidification is the buildup of hydrogen cations, which reduces the soil pH. Chemically, this happens when a proton donor gets added to the soil. The donor can be an acid, such as nitric acid, sulfuric acid, or carbonic acid. It can also be a compound such as aluminium sulfate, which reacts in the soil to release protons. Acidification also occurs when base cations such as calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium are leached from the soil.
Agricultural soil science is a branch of soil science that deals with the study of edaphic conditions as they relate to the production of food and fiber. In this context, it is also a constituent of the field of agronomy and is thus also described as soil agronomy.
Soil biology is the study of microbial and faunal activity and ecology in soil. Soil life, soil biota, soil fauna, or edaphon is a collective term that encompasses all organisms that spend a significant portion of their life cycle within a soil profile, or at the soil-litter interface. These organisms include earthworms, nematodes, protozoa, fungi, bacteria, different arthropods, as well as some reptiles, and species of burrowing mammals like gophers, moles and prairie dogs. Soil biology plays a vital role in determining many soil characteristics. The decomposition of organic matter by soil organisms has an immense influence on soil fertility, plant growth, soil structure, and carbon storage. As a relatively new science, much remains unknown about soil biology and its effect on soil ecosystems.
Bulk soil is soil outside the rhizosphere that is not penetrated by plant roots. The bulk soil is like an ecosystem, it is made up of many things such as: nutrients, ions, soil particles, and root exudates. There are many different interactions that occur between all the members of the bulk soil. Natural organic compounds are much lower in bulk soil than in the rhizosphere. Furthermore, bulk soil inhabitants are generally smaller than identical species in the rhizosphere. The main two aspects of bulk soil are its chemistry and microbial community composition.
In soil science, mineralization is the decomposition of the chemical compounds in organic matter, by which the nutrients in those compounds are released in soluble inorganic forms that may be available to plants. Mineralization is the opposite of immobilization.
Soil organic matter (SOM) is the organic matter component of soil, consisting of plant and animal detritus at various stages of decomposition, cells and tissues of soil microbes, and substances that soil microbes synthesize. SOM provides numerous benefits to the physical and chemical properties of soil and its capacity to provide regulatory ecosystem services. SOM is especially critical for soil functions and quality.
Soil carbon is the solid carbon stored in global soils. This includes both soil organic matter and inorganic carbon as carbonate minerals. It is vital to the soil capacity in our ecosystem. Soil carbon is a carbon sink in regard to the global carbon cycle, playing a role in biogeochemistry, climate change mitigation, and constructing global climate models. Natural variation such as organisms and time has affected the management of carbon in the soils. The major influence has been that of human activities which has caused a massive loss of soil organic carbon. An example of human activity includes fire which destroys the top layer of the soil and the soil therefore get exposed to excessive oxidation.
Photogeochemistry merges photochemistry and geochemistry into the study of light-induced chemical reactions that occur or may occur among natural components of Earth's surface. The first comprehensive review on the subject was published in 2017 by the chemist and soil scientist Timothy A Doane, but the term photogeochemistry appeared a few years earlier as a keyword in studies that described the role of light-induced mineral transformations in shaping the biogeochemistry of Earth; this indeed describes the core of photogeochemical study, although other facets may be admitted into the definition.
Soil aggregate stability is a measure of the ability of soil aggregates—soil particles that bind together—to resist breaking apart when exposed to external forces such as water erosion and wind erosion, shrinking and swelling processes, and tillage. Soil aggregate stability is a measure of soil structure and can be affected by soil management.
The physical properties of soil, in order of decreasing importance for ecosystem services such as crop production, are texture, structure, bulk density, porosity, consistency, temperature, colour and resistivity. Soil texture is determined by the relative proportion of the three kinds of soil mineral particles, called soil separates: sand, silt, and clay. At the next larger scale, soil structures called peds or more commonly soil aggregates are created from the soil separates when iron oxides, carbonates, clay, silica and humus, coat particles and cause them to adhere into larger, relatively stable secondary structures. Soil bulk density, when determined at standardized moisture conditions, is an estimate of soil compaction. Soil porosity consists of the void part of the soil volume and is occupied by gases or water. Soil consistency is the ability of soil materials to stick together. Soil temperature and colour are self-defining. Resistivity refers to the resistance to conduction of electric currents and affects the rate of corrosion of metal and concrete structures which are buried in soil. These properties vary through the depth of a soil profile, i.e. through soil horizons. Most of these properties determine the aeration of the soil and the ability of water to infiltrate and to be held within the soil.
The soil matrix is the solid phase of soils, and comprise the solid particles that make up soils. Soil particles can be classified by their chemical composition (mineralogy) as well as their size. The particle size distribution of a soil, its texture, determines many of the properties of that soil, in particular hydraulic conductivity and water potential, but the mineralogy of those particles can strongly modify those properties. The mineralogy of the finest soil particles, clay, is especially important.
Seventeen elements or nutrients are essential for plant growth and reproduction. They are carbon (C), hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sulfur (S), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), iron (Fe), boron (B), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni) and chlorine (Cl). Nutrients required for plants to complete their life cycle are considered essential nutrients. Nutrients that enhance the growth of plants but are not necessary to complete the plant's life cycle are considered non-essential, although some of them, such as silicon (Si), have been shown to improve nutrent availability, hence the use of stinging nettle and horsetail macerations in Biodynamic agriculture. With the exception of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, which are supplied by carbon dioxide and water, and nitrogen, provided through nitrogen fixation, the nutrients derive originally from the mineral component of the soil. The Law of the Minimum expresses that when the available form of a nutrient is not in enough proportion in the soil solution, then other nutrients cannot be taken up at an optimum rate by a plant. A particular nutrient ratio of the soil solution is thus mandatory for optimizing plant growth, a value which might differ from nutrient ratios calculated from plant composition.
Constructed soils are mixtures of organic and mineral material derived from a number of sources, including repurposed organic waste, that are designed to approximate natural soils and provide a growing medium for plants. Constructed soils are commonly used in the reclamation of degraded land where natural topsoil is either not present or has been contaminated. Examples of these sites include mines, landfills, and other industrial or urban areas. Constructed soils are classified as Technosols, and often form the upper layer, or layers, in a Technosol above a geomembrane or other barrier capping waste material.