minerals, they are highly sensitive to solute changes in soil water. The 2011 tsunami
also destroyed the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, depositing large
amounts of radioactive elements on the soil surface. The behavior of radiocesium
in the soil–water system is described. Finally, this chapter discusses the phosphates
related to soil–plant systems. The behavior of phosphates, whether inherited from
parent materials or applied as fertilizers, is closely related to the inorganic constituents of the soil.
1.3 Purpose
This monograph serves two purposes. Accompanied by visual aids, it first introduces
the simplified fundamentals of inorganic soil constituents for students of soil science
and interested researchers in other disciplines. Scientific information pertaining to
inorganic soil constituents has become increasingly important as concern for the
environment has increased. The second purpose of the monograph is to update topics
on non-crystalline inorganic soil constituents, the effects of redox reactions, and the
effects of disasters on the inorganic constituents of soil. These topics appear in the
latter chapters.
Many complete texts and references about minerals in soil are already available
(Dixon and Weed 1989; Dixon and Schulze 2002; Huang et al. 2012; Deer et al.
2013). These materials systematically describe the crystallography, properties, formation, and occurrence of the mineral constituents and are recommended for further
study.
1.4 Methods
This section, except for the final paragraph, describes the various methods mainly
used to collect the results presented in succeeding chapters. Particle size fractionation is effective for studying the inorganic constituents in soil. Primary and secondary minerals were prepared by routine treatments of soil samples, such as
air-drying, gentle grinding with a mortar, dry sieving, H 2 O 2 digestion, and ultrasonic
treatment (Gee and Bauder 1986). After dispersion, the particle sizes were fractionated by wet sieving and siphoning. Dispersion was maximized by adjusting the
pH. Alkaline conditions (pH ¼ 10.5) are effective for crystalline clays. Primary
minerals were treated with dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) when necessary.
DCB treatment was also used for X-ray diffraction analysis of the clay fraction
(Harris and White 2008). Heavy and light minerals were separated using a heavy
liquid. This method is effective, but it is affected by composite mineral particles,
which are not rare in soils.
The landscapes and soil profiles at the sampling sites of inorganic constituents
were photographed, microphotographs of the inorganic constituents in soil were
1.4 Methods
5
also destroyed the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, depositing large
amounts of radioactive elements on the soil surface. The behavior of radiocesium
in the soil–water system is described. Finally, this chapter discusses the phosphates
related to soil–plant systems. The behavior of phosphates, whether inherited from
parent materials or applied as fertilizers, is closely related to the inorganic constituents of the soil.
1.3 Purpose
This monograph serves two purposes. Accompanied by visual aids, it first introduces
the simplified fundamentals of inorganic soil constituents for students of soil science
and interested researchers in other disciplines. Scientific information pertaining to
inorganic soil constituents has become increasingly important as concern for the
environment has increased. The second purpose of the monograph is to update topics
on non-crystalline inorganic soil constituents, the effects of redox reactions, and the
effects of disasters on the inorganic constituents of soil. These topics appear in the
latter chapters.
Many complete texts and references about minerals in soil are already available
(Dixon and Weed 1989; Dixon and Schulze 2002; Huang et al. 2012; Deer et al.
2013). These materials systematically describe the crystallography, properties, formation, and occurrence of the mineral constituents and are recommended for further
study.
1.4 Methods
This section, except for the final paragraph, describes the various methods mainly
used to collect the results presented in succeeding chapters. Particle size fractionation is effective for studying the inorganic constituents in soil. Primary and secondary minerals were prepared by routine treatments of soil samples, such as
air-drying, gentle grinding with a mortar, dry sieving, H 2 O 2 digestion, and ultrasonic
treatment (Gee and Bauder 1986). After dispersion, the particle sizes were fractionated by wet sieving and siphoning. Dispersion was maximized by adjusting the
pH. Alkaline conditions (pH ¼ 10.5) are effective for crystalline clays. Primary
minerals were treated with dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) when necessary.
DCB treatment was also used for X-ray diffraction analysis of the clay fraction
(Harris and White 2008). Heavy and light minerals were separated using a heavy
liquid. This method is effective, but it is affected by composite mineral particles,
which are not rare in soils.
The landscapes and soil profiles at the sampling sites of inorganic constituents
were photographed, microphotographs of the inorganic constituents in soil were
1.4 Methods
5