Unit 3 Soil Chemistry

UNIT LEARNING OUTCOMES

TLO 8: Apply chemistry to the environment for calculations and design appropriate for soil

ENGAGE
Soil is our life support system. Soils provide anchorage for roots, hold water and nutrients.
Soils are home to myriad micro-organisms that fix nitrogen and decompose organic
matter, and armies of microscopic animals as well as earthworms and termites. We build
on soil as well as with it and in it.

Soil plays a vital role in the Earth’s ecosystem. Without soil human life would be very difficult.
Soil provides plants with foothold for their roots and holds the necessary nutrients for plants
to grow; it filters the rainwater and regulates the discharge of excess rainwater, preventing
flooding; it is capable of storing large amounts of organic carbon; it buffers against
pollutants, thus protecting groundwater quality; it provides Man with some essential
construction and manufacturing materials, we build our houses with bricks made from clay,
we drink coffee from a cup that is essentially backed soil (clay); it also presents a record of
past environmental conditions.

Soil functions are general capabilities of soils that are important for various agricultural,
environmental, nature protection, landscape architecture and urban applications. Six key
soil functions are: (1) Food and other biomass production; (2) Environmental Interaction:
storage, filtering, and transformation; (3) Biological habitat and gene pool; (4) Source of
raw materials; (5) Physical and cultural heritage; and (6) Platform for man-made structures:
buildings, highways

EXPLORE

Soils are complex mixtures of minerals, water, air, organic matter, and countless organisms
that are the decaying remains of once-living things. It forms at the surface of land – it is the
“skin of the earth.” Soil is capable of supporting plant life and is vital to life on earth. Soil, as
formally defined in the Soil Science Society of America Glossary of Soil Science Terms, is:

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 1. The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the
earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants.
2. The unconsolidated mineral or organic matter on the surface of the earth that has
been subjected to and shows effects of genetic and environmental factors of:
climate (including water and temperature effects), and macro- and
microorganisms, conditioned by relief, acting on parent material over a period of
time.

Soil chemistry, discipline embracing all chemical and mineralogical compounds and
reactions occurring in soils and soil-forming processes. The goals of soil chemistry are: (1) to
establish, through chemical analysis, compositional limits of natural soil types and optimal
growth conditions for the various plant communities, (2) to derive principles governing
development of soil profiles, and (3) to apply analytical and theoretical knowledge to the
improvement of agricultural production.

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.
Accordingly, pedology embraces several subdisciplines, namely, soil chemistry, soil physics,
and soil microbiology. Each employs a sophisticated array of methods and laboratory
equipment not unlike that used in studies of the physics, chemistry, or microbiology of
nonsoils systems. Sampling, description, and mapping of soils is considerably simpler,
however. A soil auger is used to obtain core samples in places where no subsurface
exposure can be found, and the soil units are defined, delineated, and mapped in a
manner similar to procedures in stratigraphy. Such soils studies, in fact, overlap the
concerns of the stratigrapher and the geologist, both of whom may treat the soils layers as
strata of the Quaternary Period (from 2.6 million years ago to the present).

So then, what is dirt? Dirt is what gets on our clothes or under our fingernails. It is soil that is
out of place in our world – whether tracked inside by shoes or on our clothes. Dirt is also soil
that has lost the characteristics that give it the ability to support life – it is “dead.” Soil
performs many critical functions in almost any ecosystem (whether a farm, forest, prairie,
marsh, or suburban watershed). There are seven general roles that soils play:

1. Soils serve as media for growth of all kinds of plants.

2. Soils modify the atmosphere by emitting and absorbing gases (carbon dioxide,
methane, water vapor, and the like) and dust.
3. Soils provide habitat for animals that live in the soil (such as groundhogs and mice)
to organisms (such as bacteria and fungi), that account for most of the living things
on Earth.
4. Soils absorb, hold, release, alter, and purify most of the water in terrestrial systems.
5. Soils process recycled nutrients, including carbon, so that living things can use them
over and over again.
6. Soils serve as engineering media for construction of foundations, roadbeds, dams
and buildings, and preserve or destroy artifacts of human endeavors.
7. Soils act as a living filter to clean water before it moves into an aquifer.

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 Soil Profile
There are different types of soil, each with its own set of characteristics. Dig down deep into
any soil, and you’ll see that it is made of layers, or horizons (O, A, E, B, C, R). Put the horizons
together, and they form a soil profile. Like a biography, each profile tells a story about the
life of a soil. Most soils have three major horizons (A, B, C) and some have an organic
horizon (O).

The horizons are:

O – (humus or organic) Mostly organic matter
such as decomposing leaves. The O horizon is
thin in some soils, thick in others, and not present
at all in others.
A - (topsoil) Mostly minerals from parent material
with organic matter incorporated. A good
material for plants and other organisms to live.
E – (eluviated) Leached of clay, minerals, and
organic matter, leaving a concentration of sand
and silt particles of quartz or other resistant
materials – missing in some soils but often found
in older soils and forest soils.
B – (subsoil) Rich in minerals that leached
(moved down) from the A or E horizons and
accumulated here.
C – (parent material) The deposit at Earth’s
surface from which the soil developed.
R – (bedrock) A mass of rock such as granite, basalt, quartzite, limestone or sandstone that
forms the parent material for some soils – if the bedrock is close enough to the surface to
weather. This is not soil and is located under the C horizon.

Weathering

Weathering describes the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on the surface
of the Earth. Water, ice, acids, salts, plants, animals, and changes in temperature are all
agents of weathering.

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 Once a rock has been broken down, a process called erosion transports the bits of rock
and mineral away. No rock on Earth is hard enough to resist the forces of weathering and
erosion. Together, these processes carved landmarks such as the Grand Canyon, in the
U.S. state of Arizona. This massive canyon is 446 kilometers (277 miles) long, as much as 29
kilometers (18 miles) wide, and 1,600 meters (1 mile) deep.

Weathering and erosion constantly change the rocky landscape of Earth. Weathering
wears away exposed surfaces over time. The length of exposure often contributes to how
vulnerable a rock is to weathering. Rocks, such as lavas, that are quickly buried beneath
other rocks are less vulnerable to weathering and erosion than rocks that are exposed to
agents such as wind and water.

As it smoothes rough, sharp rock surfaces, weathering is often the first step in the
production of soils. Tiny bits of weathered minerals mix with plants, animal remains, fungi,
bacteria, and other organisms. A single type of weathered rock often produces infertile
soil, while weathered materials from a collection of rocks is richer in mineral diversity and
contributes to more fertile soil. Soils types associated with a mixture of weathered rock
include glacial till, loess, and alluvial sediments.

Weathering is often divided into the processes of mechanical weathering and chemical
weathering. Biological weathering, in which living or once-living organisms contribute to
weathering, can be a part of both processes.

Soil Formation

Soils are formed through the interaction of five major factors: time, climate, parent
material, topography and relief, and organisms. The relative influence of each factor varies
from place to place, but the combination of all five factors normally determines the kind of
soil developing in any given place.

Time: The formation of soils is a continuing process and generally takes several thousand
years for significant changes to take place.

Climate: Climate, particularly temperature, precipitation and frost action have a profound
influence on the soil forming processes which occur within a region. The kind of climate
largely determines the nature of the weathering processes that will occur and the rates of
these chemical and physical processes. It directly affects the type of vegetation in an area
which in turn will affect those soil forming processes related to vegetation.

Parent Material: Parent material is the unconsolidated mineral and organic deposits in
which soils are developing. It determines the mineralogical composition and contributes
largely to the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil. The kind of parent material
also influences the rate at which soil forming processes take place.

Topography and Relief: The shape of the land surface, its slope and position on the
landscape, greatly influence the kinds of soils formed. Soils that developed on higher
elevations and sloping areas are generally excessively drained or well drained. Depth to
groundwater is generally greater than 6 feet and surface runoff is moderate or rapid. Soil

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 profiles within these areas commonly have a bright colored strong brown to yellowish
brown upper solum grading to a lighter, grayer, unweathered substratum. Soils that occur
at lower elevations such as in swales, adjacent to drainage-ways and water bodies, and
within depressions generally receive surface runoff from higher elevations and often have a
seasonal high water table at a shallow depth. Soil profiles within moderately well drained
and poorly drained areas are mottled with irregular spots of brown, yellow and grey colors.
In very poorly drained areas, where the water table is at or near the surface for prolonged
periods, soil profiles characteristically have a dark-colored organic or organic rich surface
layer underlain by a strongly mottled or gleyed (gray color indicating a reduced condition)
subsoil and substratum.

Organisms: All living organisms actively influence the soil forming process. These organisms
include bacteria, fungi, vegetation and animals. Their major influence is the effect on the
chemical and physical environment of the soils. Some types of micro-organisms promote
acid conditions and change the chemistry of the soil which in turn influences the type of
soil forming processes that take place. Microbial animals decompose organic materials
and return the products of decomposition to the soil. Larger animals such as earthworms
and burrowing animals mix the soil and change its physical characteristics. They generally
make the soil more permeable to air and water. Their waste products cause aggregation
of the soil particles and improve soil structure. Man's activities have significantly altered
many areas of natural soils in the county. The chemical and physical properties, particularly
of the plow layer, have changed with cultivation and the addition of lime and fertilizer.
Artificial drainage and filling have altered the environment of some naturally wet soils. Of
all the animals, man can have the most beneficial or most detrimental impact on the soil
forming processes.

Soil Structure

Granular Blocky Prismatic

Columnar Platy Single Grain

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 ▪ Granular: Resembles cookie crumbs and is usually less than 0.5 cm in diameter.
Commonly found in surface horizons where roots have been growing.
▪ Blocky:Irregular blocks hat are usually 1.5 - 5.0 cm in diameter.
▪ Prismatic: Vertical columns of soil that might be a number of cm long. Usually found in
lower horizons.
▪ Columnar: Vertical columns of soil that have a salt “cap”at the top. Found in soils of
arid climates.
▪ Platy: Thin, flat plates of soil that lie horizontally. Usually found in compacted soil.
▪ Single Grained: Soil is broken into individual particles that do not stick together. Always
accompanies a loose consistence. Commonly found in sandy soils.

Soil Types

Soil is a natural resource that can be categorized into different soil types, each with distinct
characteristics that provide growing benefits and limitations. Identifying the type of soil you
require for a project is paramount to support the healthy growth of plant life. Soil can be
categorized into sand, clay, silt, peat, chalk and loam types of soil based on the
dominating size of the particles within a soil.

Sandy soil
 Sandy Soil is light, warm, dry and tend to be
acidic and low in nutrients. Sandy soils are often
known as light soils due to their high proportion of
sand and little clay (clay weighs more than sand).
 These soils have quick water drainage and are
easy to work with. They are quicker to warm up in
spring than clay soils but tend to dry out in
summer and suffer from low nutrients that are
washed away by rain.
 The addition of organic matter can help give
plants an additional boost of nutrients by
improving the nutrient and water holding
capacity of the soil.

Clay Soil
 Clay Soil is a heavy soil type that benefits from
high nutrients. Clay soils remain wet and cold in
winter and dry out in summer.
 These soils are made of over 25 percent clay, and
because of the spaces found between clay
particles, clay soils hold a high amount of water.
 Because these soils drain slowly and take longer
to warm up in summer, combined with drying out
and cracking in summer, they can often test
gardeners.

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 Silt Soil
 Silt Soil is a light and moisture retentive soil type
with a high fertility rating.
 As silt soils compromise of medium sized particles
they are well drained and hold moisture well.
 As the particles are fine, they can be easily
compacted and are prone to washing away with
rain.
 By adding organic matter, the silt particles can be
bound into more stable clumps.

Peat Soil
 Peat soil is high in organic matter and retains a
large amount of moisture.
 This type of soil is very rarely found in a garden
and often imported into a garden to provide an
optimum soil base for planting.

Chalk Soil
 Chalk soil can be either light or heavy but always
highly alkaline due to the calcium carbonate or
lime within its structure.
 As these soils are alkaline they will not support the
growth of ericaceous plants that require acidic
soils to grow.
 If a chalky soil shows signs of visible white lumps
then they can’t be acidified and gardeners
should be resigned to only choose plants that
prefer an alkaline soil.

Loam Soil
 Loam soil is a mixture of sand, silt and clay that
are combined to avoid the negative effects of
each type.
 These soils are fertile, easy to work with and
provide good drainage. Depending on their
predominant composition they can be either
sandy or clay loam.
 As the soils are a perfect balance of soil particles,
they are considered to be a gardeners best
friend, but still benefit from topping up with
additional organic matter.

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 EXPLAIN

Activity 1: Soils in Engineering

Self-Assessment No. 1

Identify which soil types or soil structures are important to your field of interest and why?
Discuss the uses for each.

To be submitted in Google classroom on:

ELABORATE & EVALUATE

Activity 2: Everyday Soils

Self-Assessment No. 2

Look around you and identify the things that wouldn’t have been there without soil.
Discuss why soil is important for their existence. Would there be alternatives to soil to
create these things? What are they?

To be submitted in Google classroom on:

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