Premium
Microbial mineralization of organic compounds in an acidic agricultural soil: Effects of preadsorption to various soil constituents
Author(s) -
Knaebel David B.,
Vestal J. Robie,
Federle Thomas W.,
McAvoy Drew C.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
environmental toxicology and chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1552-8618
pISSN - 0730-7268
DOI - 10.1002/etc.5620151103
Subject(s) - mineralization (soil science) , chemistry , environmental chemistry , illite , kaolinite , bioavailability , montmorillonite , soil water , microbial biodegradation , clay minerals , mineralogy , organic chemistry , microorganism , soil science , bacteria , geology , nitrogen , paleontology , bioinformatics , biology
This study investigated the interactions between organic chemicals and components of the soil matrix and their effects on subsequent microbial mineralization kinetics. Five 14 C‐labeled chemicals (anionic, cationic, and nonionic surfactants) were aseptically sorbed to montmorillonite, kaolinite, illite, sand, humic acids, and fulvic acids. Small amounts of these sorbed chemicals were dosed to an acidic, sludge‐amended agricultural soil (Rossmoyne) to a final added chemical concentration of 50 ng g −1 . Controls received the same final added concentration of the chemicals in water. The ratio of sorbed chemical to soil was kept low to minimize changes to the soil mineralogy, chemistry, and microbiology. Microbial mineralization of the chemicals to 14 CO 2 was measured over a period of 60 to 70 d, and the data were fitted to first‐order and 3/2‐order mineralization models. Association with the soil constituents inhibited the mineralization of the chemicals in the following rank (from least to greatest effect): controls ≈ sand < kaolinite < illite < montmorillonite ≈ humic acids < fulvic acids. These experiments demonstrated that interactions with some soil constituents (kaolinite, illite, and sand) had little effect on the microbial metabolism of these chemicals, while montmorillonite, humic acids, and especially fulvic acids significantly decreased the bioavailability of the chemicals to the microbial community. The first group of soil constituents had little influence on the mineralization kinetic parameters, whereas the latter significantly reduced at least one of the parameter estimates. The parent soil, possibly via interactions with its mineral surfaces, also had effects on the degradation of the chemicals, since soil microbial biomass and physiological activity were not correlated with any of the mineralization kinetic parameter estimates. These experiments demonstrate that the environmental form of a chemical has a significant influence on its eventual microbial metabolism and is an important parameter to consider when investigating the fate of chemicals in soil environments.