Principles of Soil Chemistry

Learn the secrets of soil chemistry and its role in agriculture and the environment. Examine the fundamental laws of soil chemistry, how they affect dissolution, cation and anion exchange, and other reactions. Explore how water can form water-bridges and hydrogen bonding, the most common forces in adsorption, chelation, and more. Discover how electrical charges develop in soils creating electrochemical potentials forcing ions to move into the plant body through barriers such as root membranes, nourishing crops and plants. You can do all this and more with Principles of Soil Chemistry, Fourth Edition.
Since the first edition published in 1982, this resource has made a name for itself as a textbook for upper level undergraduates and as a handy reference for professionals and scientists. This fourth edition reexamines the entire reach of soil chemistry while maintaining the clear, concise style that made previous editions so user-friendly. By completely revising, updating, and incorporating a decade’s worth of new information, author Kim Tan has made this edition an entirely new and better book.
See what's new in the Fourth Edition

* Reexamines atoms as the smallest particle that will enter into chemical reactions by probing new advances testifying the presence of subatomic particles and concepts such as string theory
* Underscores oxygen as the key element in soil air and atmosphere for life on earth
* Reevaluates the idea of transformation of orthoclase into albite by simple cation exchange reactions as misleading and bending scientific concepts of ion exchange over the limit of truth
* Examines the role of fertilizers, sulfur, pyrite, acid rain, and nitrogen fixation in soil acidity, underscoring the controversial effect of nitrification on increasing soil acidity over time
* Addresses the old and new approaches to humic acids by comparing the traditional operational concept against the currently proposed supramolecular and pseudomicellar concept
* Proposes soil organics, such as nucleic acids of DNA and others, to also adsorb cation ions held as diffusive ion clouds around the polymers

Tan explains, in easy and simple language, the chemical make-up of the four soil constituents, their chemical reactions and interactions in soils as governed by basic chemical laws, and their importance in agriculture, industry, and the environment. He differentiates soil chemistry from geochemistry and physical chemistry. Containing more than 200 equations, 123 figures, and 38 tables, this popular text and resource supplies a comprehensive treatment of soil chemistry that builds a foundation for work in environmental pollution, organic and inorganic soil contamination, and potential ecological health and environmental health risks.

Definitions and Concepts of Solid Chemistry
The Issue of Soil Chemistry
Definition of Chemistry
Concept of Soil Physical Chemistry
Concept of Geochemistry
Concept of Soil Chemistry
Overview of Basic Chemical Principles and Units
Atom and Atomic Structure
Particle Accelerators or Synchrotons
Elementary Particles
String Theory
Atomic Model of Rutherford and Bohr
Mass and Weight
Atomic Mass and Atomic Mass Number
Atomic Number
Atomic Weights
Avogadro's Number
Atomic Orbitals
Atomic Radius
Valence
Equivalent Weight
Chemical Units
Isotopes
Radioactivity
Half-Life of Radioactive Material and Carbon Dating
Soil Composition and Electrochemical Potentials
Soil Composition
Concept of Electrochemical Potentials
The Nernst Equation
Electrode Potentials in Redox Reactions
Electron Activity
rH Concept
Chemical Potential
Electrochemical Potential
Membrane or Donnan Potential
Soil Gas and Liquid Phases
The Gaseous Phase
Composition of Soil Air
The Oxygen Revolution
Soil Aeration and Aerification
Characterization of Soil Air Quality
Humidity of Soil Air
Hydrotropism
The Liquid Phase
Chemistry of Soil Water
Oxygen Demand of Water
Soil-Water Energy Concept
Plant-Soil-Water Energy Relation
Law of Mass Action and Equilibrium Constant
Solubility Product
Dissociation of Water
Dissociation of Strong Electrolytes
Dissociation of Weak Electrolytes
The Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation
The Equilibrium Constant and Ion Pairs
The Exchange Constant and Ion Exchange
Relationship between Equilibrium Constant and Cell or Electrode Potential
Equilibrium Constant and Free Energy Relationship
Equilibrium Constant and Electron Activity
Activity and Standard State
Debye-Hueckel Theory and Activity Coefficients
Ionic Strength
Colloidal Chemistry of Organic Soil Constituents
The Colloidal System
The Organic Components
Soil Humus
Carbohydrates
Amino Acids, Peptides and Protein
Lipids
Nucleic Acids
Lignins
Humic Matter

Colloidal Chemistry of Inorganic Soil Constituents
The Clay Fraction of Soils
Structural Chemistry of Clay Minerals
The Identification of Clay Minerals
Surface Chemistry of Soil Clays
Surface Areas
Origin of Negative Charge in Soil Clays
Positive Charges and Zero Point of Charge
The Use of ΔpH in the Determination of Negative or Positive Charges
Surface Potential
Electric Double Layer
The Zeta (ζ) Potential
The Electric Double Layer and Stability of Clays
The Effect of Flocculation and Dispersion on Plant Growth
Adsorption in Soils
Types of Adsorption
Adsorption Characteristics
Forces of Adsorption
Adsorption Isotherms
Adsorption of Water
Plant-Soil-Water Energy Relation
Adsorption of Organic Compounds
Interparticle Attraction
Cation Exchange
Adsorption of Cations by Soil Colloids
Cation Exchange Reactions
Cation Exchange Capacity
The Exchanging Powers of Cations
The Ionic Composition of The Exchange Complex
Empirical Equations of Cation Exchange
Mass Action Law Equations of Cation Exchange
Kinetic Equations of Cation Exchange
Thermodynamic Equations of Cation Exchange
Cation Exchange Equation Based on the Donnan Theory
Cation Exchange Equation of Eriksson
Cation Exchange Equation According to the Diffuse Double Layer Theory
Schofield's Ratio Law
Fixation of Cations
Base Saturation
Adsorption and Exchange of Cations by Soil Organic Matter
Anion Exchange
Positive Charges
Adsorption of Anions by Soil Colloids
Phosphate Retention and Fixation
Biological Fixation of Phosphate
Soil Reaction and Availability of Inorganic Phosphates
Prediction of Phosphate Ion Concentration According to Schofield's Ratio Law
The Phosphate Potential

Soil Reaction
Definition and Importance
Acid-Base Chemistry
Application in Soils
Formulation of Soil Acidity and Alkalinity
Concepts of Soil Acidity
The Role of Aluminum in Soil Acidity
The Role of Fertilizers, Sulfur, Pyrite, N-Fixation, and Acid Rain in Soil Acidity
Buffering Capacity of Soils
Electrometric Measurement of Soil pH
Suspension Effect in Soil pH Measurement
Lime Potential
The Need for Acidic Soil Reactions
Soil Reactions in Saline and Sodic Soils
Chemical Characterization of Saline and Sodic Soils
Effect of Salinization and Sodication on Plant Growth
Irrigation of Saline and Sodic Soils
Salt Balance and Leaching Ratio
Irrigation-Induced Salinization and Sodication
Soil Chemistry and Soil Formation
Concepts of Weathering
Weathering Processes
Stability and Weathering of Soil Minerals
Weathering of Feldspars and the Silica Potential
Weathering of Kaolinite and the Gibbsite Potential
Stability and Phase Relationships of Soil Minerals
Biological and Biochemical Weathering
Soil Formation Processes or Pedogenesis
Oxidation and Reduction Reaction in Soils
Chemistry of Soil-Organic Matter Interaction
Complex Formation and Chelation
Interactions with Soil Organic Compounds
Metal-Organic Complex Reaction
Clay-Organic Compound ComplexesComplex Formation and Mobility of Soil Constituents
Stability Diagram of Metal Chelates
Complex Formation and Clay Mobility
Complex Formation and Soil Fertility
Appendix A Fundamental Constants
Appendix B Greek Alphabet
Appendix C Periodic Classification of Elements
Appendix D X-ray Diffraction 21 d Spacing Conversion Table
Appendix E System International (SI) Units
Appendix F Factors for Converting U.S. units into SI units
References and Additional Readings
Index