SOIL CHEMISTRY

Soil Chemistry
3.3.1 Introduction
3.3.2 Characteristic of Soil
3.3.3 Essential Elements in Soil
3.3.4 Nutrient Cycling in Soil
3.3.5 Cation Exchange Capacity
3.3.6 Soil pH and Soil Acidity
Soil & Soil Engineering
• Soils are one of Earth's essential natural resources, yet
they are often taken for granted. Most people do not
realize that soils are a living, breathing world supporting
nearly all terrestrial life. Soils and the functions they play
within an ecosystem vary greatly from one location to
another as a result of many factors, including differences
in climate, the animal and plant life living on them, the
soil's parent material, the position of the soil on the
landscape, and the age of the soil.
 Scientists, engineers, farmers, developers and other professionals
consider a soil's physical and chemical characteristics, moisture
content and temperature to make decisions such as:
1.Where is the best place to build a building?
2.What types of crops will grow best in a particular
field?
3.Will the basement of a house flood when it rains?
4.How can the quality of the groundwater in the area
be improved?
Why Investigate Soils?
Soils develop on top of Earth's land surface as a thin layer,
known as the pedosphere. This thin layer is a precious natural
resource and so deeply affects every part of the ecosystem that it
is often called the "great integrator." For example, soils hold
nutrients and water for plants and animals. They filter and clean
water that passes through them. They can change the chemistry
of water and the amount that recharges the groundwater or
returns to the atmosphere to form rain. The foods we eat and
most of the materials we use for paper, buildings, and clothing
are dependent on soils.
 Soils play an important role in the amount and types
of gases in the atmosphere. They store and transfer
heat, affect the temperature of the atmosphere, and
control the activities of plants and other organisms
living in the soil. By studying these functions that soil's
play, students and scientists learn to interpret a site 's
climate, geology, vegetation, hydrology, and human
history. They begin to understand soil as an important
component of every ecosystem on Earth.
Definition of Soil
The soil is at the interface between the atmosphere and lithosphere
(the mantle of rocks making up the Earth's crust). It also has an
interface with the hydrosphere, i.e. the sphere describing surface
water, ground water and oceans. The soil sustains the growth of
many plants and animals, and so forms part of the biosphere. A
combination of physical, chemical and biotic forces acts on organic
and weathered rock fragments to produce soils with a porous fabric
that contain water and air (pedosphere). We consider soil as a
natural body of mineral and organic material that is formed in
response to many environmental factors and processes acting on
and changing soil permanently.
The term Soil has various meanings, depending upon
the general field in which it is being considered.
*To a Pedologist ... Soil is the substance existing on the
earth's surface, which grows and develops plant life.

*To a Geologist ..... Soil is the material in the relative

thin surface zone within which roots occur, and all the
rest of the crust is grouped under the term ROCK
irrespective of its hardness.
Pedology, scientific discipline concerned with all
aspects of soils, including their physical and chemical
properties, the role of organisms in soil production and
in relation to soil character, the description and
mapping of soil units, and the origin and
formation of soils.
Geology – is a science that deals with the history of
the earth and its life especially as recorded in rocks.
How to use geology in a sentence.The study of earth.
*To an Engineer .... Soil is the un-aggregated or un-
cemented deposits of mineral and/or organic
particles or fragments covering large portion of the
earth's crust.

** Soil Mechanics is one of the youngest disciplines of

Civil Engineering involving the study of soil, its
behavior and application as an engineering material.
*According to Terzaghi (1948): "Soil Mechanics is the
application of laws of mechanics and hydraulics to
engineering problems dealing with sediments and
other unconsolidated accumulations of solid particles
produced by the mechanical and chemical
disintegration of rocks regardless of whether or not
they contain an admixture of organic constituent."
The Five Soil Forming Factors
• The properties of a soil are the result of the
interaction between the Five Soil Forming Factors.
These factors are:
1. Parent Material: The material from which the soil is
formed determines many of its properties. The parent
material of a soil may be bedrock, organic material,
construction material, or loose soil material deposited
by wind, water, glaciers, volcanoes, or moved down a
slope by gravity.
2. Climate: Heat, rain, ice, snow, wind, sunshine, and
other environmental forces break down parent
material, move loose soil material, determine the
animals and plants able to survive at a location, and
affect the rates of soil forming processes and the
resulting soil properties.
3. Organisms: The soil is home to large numbers of
plants, animals, and microorganisms. The physical and
chemical properties of a soil determine the type and
number of organisms that can survive and thrive in
that soil. Organisms also shape the soil they live in. For
example, the growth of roots and the movement of
animals and microorganisms shift materials and
chemicals around in the soil profile. The dead remains
of soil organisms become organic matter that enriches
the soil with carbon and nutrients.
Animals and microorganisms living in the soil control
the rates of decomposition for organic and waste
materials. Organisms in the soil contribute to the
exchange of gases such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, and
nitrogen between the soil and the atmosphere. They
also help the soil filter impurities in water. Human
actions transform the soil as well, as we farm, build,
dam, dig, process, transport, and dispose of waste.
Animals and microorganisms living in the soil control
the rates of decomposition for organic and waste
materials. Organisms in the soil contribute to the
exchange of gases such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, and
nitrogen between the soil and the atmosphere. They
also help the soil filter impurities in water. Human
actions transform the soil as well, as we farm, build,
dam, dig, process, transport, and dispose of waste.
4. Topography: The location of a soil on a landscape
also affects its formation and its resulting properties.
For example, soils at the bottom of a hill will get more
water than soils on the hillside, and soils on slopes that
get direct sunlight will be drier than soils on slopes
that do not.
5. Time: The amount of time that the other 4 factors
listed above have been interacting with each other
affects the properties of the soil. Some properties,
such as temperature and moisture content, change
quickly, often over minutes and hours. Others, such as
mineral changes, occur very slowly over hundreds or
thousands of years. Figure Soil-I-1 lists different soil
properties and the approximate time it takes for them
to change.
Introduction
Soil :
• unconsolidated mineral and organic matter
mixed with liquids and gasses
• occurs naturally on the earth's surface and is a
medium capable of supporting growth of
rooted plants
• differs substantially from the material from
which it is derived
A. Composition
• Inorganic material ( 45 % mineral matter as solid
particles )
• Organic material ( 5 %)
• Water (25 %)
• Air (25%)
Soil
Air
About ½ of Mineral
Matter
25%
About ½ of
the soil 45%
Soil
the soil
volume is solid Water
25%
volume is pore
particles space

Organic
Matter
5%
B. Color
• Black: high organic
content
• Yellow/red/orange: iron
• Light gray-white: calcium
or silica
Essential Nutrients
Nutrient elements obtained from the
soil
o Nitrogen o Iron
o Phosphorus o Boron
o Potassium o Manganese
o Sulfur o Zinc
o Magnesium o Molybdenum
o Calcium o Copper
Nutrient Cycling in Soil
• A nutrient cycle refers to the movement and exchange of organic
and inorganic matter back into the production of living matter.
The process is regulated by the food web pathways previously
presented, which decompose organic matter into inorganic
nutrients. Nutrient cycles occur within ecosystems.
• Soil stores, moderates the release of, and cycles nutrients and
other elements. During these biogeochemical processes,
analogous to the water cycle, nutrients can be transformed into
plant available forms, held in the soil, or even lost to air or water.
• Nutrient cycling is an extremely important function of
soils.
Living plants contain all the nutrients essential for plant
growth. When crops are harvested some of those nutrients
are removed, but many remain behind in plant litter.
When the litter falls onto the soil or is plowed under, those
nutrients are returned to the soil. Some of the nutrients in
plant litter dissolve into the soil water like salt would. Most
of the nutrients in plant litter are bound up in complex
organic molecules and are not available to plants.
The litter must first be broken down, or decomposed, by soil
microbes. The ferocious looking critters in this cartoon are meant to
be soil microbes. These are actually microscopic organisms and
cannot be seen with the naked eye. Nor do they look anything like
this under the microscope.
Hungry soil microbes, mainly bacteria and fungi, use the carbon in
the litter for food. They consume some of the nutrients in the litter
and release what they don’t need into the soil water. The feeding of
soil microbes turns fresh plant litter into stable soil organic matter.
When the microbes die the nutrients in their bodies are also
released to the soil water and are available for plants to take them
up again.
Nutrient cycling can be assessed by measuring the
following indicators:
• Fertility Indicators including mineral nitrogen, potentially
mineralizable nitrogen, soil nitrate, soil test phosphorus, potassium,
sulfur, calcium, magnesium, boron, and zinc
• Organic Matter Indicators including C:N ratio, decomposition,
microbial biomass carbon, particulate organic matter, soil enzymes,
soil organic matter, total organic carbon and total organic matter
• Soil Reaction Indicators including soil pH
Soil is the major "switching yard" for the global cycles of carbon, water,
and nutrients. Carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and many other nutrients
are stored, transformed, and cycled through soil.
• Decomposition by soil organisms is at the center of the
transformation and cycling of nutrients through the environment.
Decomposition liberates carbon and nutrients from the complex
material making up life forms-putting them back into biological
circulation so they are available to plants and other organisms.
Decomposition also degrades compounds in soil that would be
pollutants if they entered ground or surface water.
• Decomposition is a stepwise process involving virtually all soil
organisms. Arthropods and earthworms chew the material and mix
it with soil. A few fungi may break apart one complex compound
into simpler components, then bacteria can attack the newly created
compounds, and so on. Each organism gets energy or nutrients from
the process. Usually, but not always, compounds become simpler
after each step. The portion of plant and animal residue that is not
broken down plays a crucial role in soil. It is transformed into the
highly complex organic compounds called humic substances that can
persist in soil for centuries and are important to soil structure and
nutrient storage.
Cation Exchange Capacity of Soil

• CEC is a measure of negatively charged sites on

the surface, which help in holding positively
charged ions and nutrients such as sodium (Na),
potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg),
and Zn
• Surface area of the soil is different from particle size
( ex . Clay has tiny particles but greater surface area
than sand )
• If nutrients are unattached to the soil they are likely to
be leached out
• Nutrients ( Ca2+, Mg2+,K+, NH4+) has its electrostatic
energy it clings with clay particles
• Most of clay particles and organic matter of the soil
has negatively charged particle.
• Since nutrients are positive and particles are negative
opposite attracts therefore leaching is not possible
• Nutrients are temporarily attached , each nutrients
has shell of water molecules that surrounds cation
that defend it from bonding permanently this shell is
often called Hydration sphere
• If plants for example want a cation like K+, plants
produce H+ ( roots ) that can be interchanged with the
nutrients of the soil .
• Cations with higher charge of small size is preferred by
soil than those with lower charge with bigger size
• Not all nutrients are cations there are also negatively
charge or anions ( sulfates & nitrates ) thus they are
not able to attached w/c is potential to leach out
• Tropical soil has positively charged soil particles thus
anions can be possible for temporary attachment.
Soil pH and Soil Acidity
• as soils age by weathering and leaching, they tend to
become more acidic
• primary minerals that release alkaline materials are
replaced by neutral or slightly acidic secondary
minerals
• leaching removes the carbonate minerals
• weathering occurs from the surface downwards so
that the A and B horizons will tend to be more acidic
than the C horizon
Significance of Soil pH
effect on soil organisms – soil organisms prefer
different pH levels
acid-sulfate soils - soils that are rich in inorganic
sulfide minerals, such as pyrites,
• can lead to the formation of excessive levels of sulfuric acid
through oxidation
• soil pH dives to very low levels
• causes solubilisation of toxic levels of aluminium, manganese
and iron from soil minerals
• plant preferences – most alkaline soils; a few which need acidic
soils
Soil Ph Management
• soils tend towards lower pH values as they age
• the main need for pH management is to making the soil more
alkaline
• most common method by liming
• agricultural lime is a mixture dominated by CaCO3, but also
containing MgCO3 and Ca(OH)2
• comes from ground limestone,
• add the nutrients calcium and magnesium to the soil
• dolomite lime has a higher proportion of magnesium carbonate
• to reduce pH , add Fe, S or peat
Soil Profile
• The five soil-forming factors differ from place to place causing soil
properties to vary from one location to another. Each area of soil
on a landscape has unique characteristics. A vertical section at one
location is called a soil profile . When we look closely at the
properties of a soil profile and consider the five soil forming
factors, the story of the soil at that site and the formation of the
area is revealed
• The chapters of the soil story at any location are read in the layers
of the soil profile. These layers are known as horizons. Soil horizons
can be as thin as a few millimeters or thicker than a meter.
Individual horizons are identified by the properties they contain
that are different from the horizons above and below them.
• Some soil horizons are formed as a result of the weathering of
minerals and decomposition of organic materials that move
down the soil profile over time. This movement, called
illuviation, influences the horizon's composition and properties.
Other horizons may be formed by the disturbance of the soil
profile from erosion, deposition, or biological activity. Soils may
also have been altered by human activity. For example, builders
compact soil, change its composition, move soil from one
location to another, or replace horizons in a different order from
their original formation.
The pH of a soil horizon (how acidic or basic the soil is) is
determined by the parent material from which the soil is formed,
the chemical nature of the rain or other water entering the soil,
land management practices, and the activities of organisms
(plants, animals, and microorganisms) living in the soil. Just like the
pH of water, the pH of soil is measured on a logarithmic scale (see
the Introduction of the Hydrology Investigation for a description of
pH).
Soil pH is an indication of the soil's chemistry and fertility. The
activity of the chemical substances in the soil affects the pH levels.
Different plants grow at different pH values. Farmers sometimes
add materials to the soil to change its pH depending on the types
of plants they want to grow. The pH of the soil also affects the pH
of ground water or nearby water bodies such as streams or lakes.  
Soil pH can be related to the water pH measured in the Hydrology
Investigation and the precipitation pH measured in the
Atmosphere Investigation.
Soil Profile
• The soil is found in layers, which are arranged during the
formation of soil. These layers called horizons, the sequence of
layers is the soil profile. The layers of soil can easily be observed
by their color and size of particles. The main layers of the soil
are topsoil, subsoil and the parent rock. Each layer has its own
characteristics.
• These features of the layer of soil play a very important role in
determining the use of the soil. Soil that has developed three
layers, is mature soil. It takes many years under a favorable
condition for the soil to develop its three layers. At some places,
the soil contains only two layers. Such soil is immature soil.
Horizons of the Soil
Soil consists of the following horizons:
1. Horizon A or Topsoil
It is also called the humus layer, which is rich in organic
material. This layer consists of decomposed material and
organic matter. This is the reason, the topsoil has a dark
brown color. The hummus makes the topsoil soft, porous to
hold enough air and water. In this layer, the seeds
germinate and roots of the plants grow. Many living
organisms like earthworms, millipedes, and centipedes,
bacteria, and fungi are found in this layer of soil.
2. Horizon B or Subsoil
Just below the topsoil lies another layer called subsoil or
horizon-B. It is comparatively harder and compact than
topsoil. It is lighter in color than the topsoil because there
is less humus in this layer. This layer is less organic but is
rich in minerals brought down from the topsoil. It contains
metal salts, especially iron oxide in a large proportion.
Farmers often mix horizon-A and horizon-B when ploughing
their fields.
3. Bedrock or Horizon C
Bedrock is also known as parent rock and lies just below
the subsoil. It contains no organic matter and made up of
stones and rocks, so it is very hard. This layer represents a
transition zone between the earth’s bedrock and horizon A
and B.
Moisture in the Soil
• Moisture plays a major role in the chemical, biological and
physical activities that take place in the soil. Chemically,
moisture transports substances through the profile. This
affects soil properties such as color, texture, pH, and fertility.
Biologically, moisture determines the types of plants that
grow in the soil and affects the way the roots are distributed.
For example, in desert areas where soils are dry, plants such
as cacti must store water or send roots deep into the soil to
tap water buried tens of meters below the surface.
Moisture in the Soil
• Plants in tropical regions have many of their roots near the
surface where organic material stores much of the water and
nutrients the plants need. Agricultural plants grow best in
soils where water occupies approximately one-fourth of the
soil volume as vapor or liquid. Physically, soil moisture is part
of the hydrologic cycle. Water falls on the soil surface as
precipitation. This water seeps down into the soil in a process
called infiltration.
Soil Temperature
The temperature of a soil can change quickly. Near the
surface, it changes almost as quickly as the air temperature
changes, but because soil is denser than air, its temperature
variations are less. Daily and annual cycles of soil
temperature can be measured. During a typical day, the soil
is cool in the morning, warms during the afternoon, and then
cools down again at night. Over the course of the year, the
soil warms up or cools down with the seasons. Because soil
temperature changes more slowly than air temperature, it
acts as an insulator, protecting soil organisms and buried
pipes from the extremes of air temperature variations.
In temperate regions, the surface soil may freeze in winter
and thaw in the spring, while in some colder climates, a
permanent layer of ice, called permafrost, is found below the
soil surface. In either case, the ground never freezes below a
certain depth. The overlying soil acts as insulation so that the
temperature of the deeper layers of soil is almost constant
throughout the year. Temperature greatly affects the
chemical and biological activity in the soil. Generally, the
warmer the soil, the greater the biological activity of
microorganisms living in the soil.
Soil Characterization
At a soil site, horizons in a soil profile are distinguished from
one another by differences in their structure, color,
consistence, texture, and the amount of roots, rocks, and
free carbonates they contain. Laboratory or classroom
analyses of bulk density, particle density, particle size
distribution, pH, and soil fertility also reveal differences
among horizons.
Structure
Structure refers to the natural shape of aggregates of soil
particles, called peds, in the soil. The soil structure provides
information about the size and shape of pore spaces in the
soil through which water, heat, and air flow, and in which
plant roots grow. Soil ped structure is described as granular,
blocky, prismatic, columnar, or platy . If the soil lacks
structure, it is described as either single-grained or massive.
At a soil site, horizons in a soil profile are distinguished from
one another by differences in their structure, color,
consistence, texture, and the amount of roots, rocks, and
free carbonates they contain. Laboratory or classroom
analyses of bulk density, particle density, particle size
distribution, pH, and soil fertility also reveal differences
among horizons.
Color
The color of soil is determined by the chemical coatings on
soil particles, the amount of organic matter in the soil, and
the moisture content of the soil. For example, soil color
tends to be darker when organic matter is present. Minerals,
such as iron, can create shades of red and yellow on the
surface of soil particles.
Soil in dry areas may appear white due to coatings of calcium
carbonate on the soil particles. Soil color is also affected by
moisture content. The amount of moisture contained in the
soil depends on how long the soil has been freely draining or
whether it is saturated with water. Typically, the greater the
moisture content of a soil, the darker its color.
Consistence
Consistence describes the firmness of the individual peds
and the degree to which they break apart. The terms used to
describe soil consistence are loose, friable, firm, and extra-
firm. A soil with friable consistence will be easier for roots,
shovels, or plows to move through than a soil with a firm
consistence.
Texture
The texture describes how a soil feels and is determined by
the amounts of sand, silt, and clay particles present in the
soil sample. The soil texture influences how much water,
heat, and nutrients will be stored in the soil profile. Human
hands are sensitive to the difference in size of soil particles.
Sand is the largest particle size group, and feels gritty. Silt is
the next particle size group, and feels smooth or floury. Clay
is the smallest particle size group and feels sticky and is hard
to squeeze. The actual amount of sand, silt, and clay size
particles in a soil sample is called the particle size
distribution and is measured in a laboratory or classroom.
1. Soil
Texture
Triangle
Roots
An estimate of the roots in each horizon in a soil profile
illustrates the depth to which roots go to obtain nutrients
and water. The more roots found in a horizon, the more
water and nutrients being removed from the soil, and the
more organic matter being returned. Knowing the amount of
roots in each horizon allows scientists to estimate the soil's
fertility, bulk density, water holding capacity, and its depth.
For example, a very compact horizon will inhibit root
development whereas a porous horizon will not.
Rocks
An estimate of the number of rocks in each horizon helps to
understand the movement of water, heat, and air through
the soil, root growth, and the amount of soil material
involved in chemical and physical reactions.
Soil particles greater than 2 mm in size are considered to be
rocks.
Rocks
An estimate of the number of rocks in each horizon helps to
understand the movement of water, heat, and air through
the soil, root growth, and the amount of soil material
involved in chemical and physical reactions.
Soil particles greater than 2 mm in size are considered to be
rocks.