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Soil chemical properties affecting NH 4 + sorption in forest soils
Author(s) -
Matschonat Gunda,
Matzner Egbert
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
zeitschrift für pflanzenernährung und bodenkunde
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.644
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1522-2624
pISSN - 0044-3263
DOI - 10.1002/jpln.1996.3581590514
Subject(s) - sorption , soil water , environmental chemistry , saturation (graph theory) , cation exchange capacity , chemistry , soil science , soil ph , environmental science , adsorption , mathematics , organic chemistry , combinatorics
Fourteen European forest soils from the boreal to the mediterranean climate on different parent materials were investigated with respect to their ability to store NH 4 + in exchangeable form, using sorption isotherms. Distribution coefficients for NH 4 + sorption per unit weight of soil were in the range of 0.02 to 0.77. NH 4 + sorption coefficients were usually highest in the forest floor of a given soil. NH 4 + sorption behaviour of mineral soil horizons was correlated to soil parameters that are determined during routine soil analysis. A combination of CEC and base saturation explained up to 95% of the variability Of NH 4 + sorption. In the forest floors, variability in NH 4 + sorption could not be explained quantitatively from independent soil parameters. The affinity of the sorption sites for NH 4 + was the most important factor for explanation of the variability in NH 4 + sorption in the forest floors but was of low importance in mineral soil horizons. As NH 4 + exchanges predominantly base cations, susceptibility of NH 4 + to transport through the soil profile increases with Iowbase saturation of a soil as well as with low CEC values.