The intensive use for over 100 years of copper sulfate (Bordeaux mixture) to fight against mildew in vineyard soils has led to an important, widespread accumulation of Cu (100 to 1500 mg Cu kg-1 soil). In Champagne vineyards, organic amendments are used currently to increase soil fertility and to limit soil erosion. Organic amendments may have a direct effect on the retention of Cu in the soil....

The Chaco leaf-cutting ant Atta vollenweideri is native to the clay-heavy soils of the Gran Chaco region in South America. Because of seasonal floods, colonies are regularly exposed to varying moisture across the soil profile, a factor that not only strongly influences workers' digging performance during nest building, but also determines the suitability of the soil for the rearing of the colon...

Both climate and plant species are hypothesized to influence soil organic carbon (SOC) quality, but accurate prediction of how SOC process rates respond to global change will require an improved understanding of how SOC quality varies with mean annual temperature (MAT) and forest type. We investigated SOC quality in paired hardwood and pine stands growing in coarse textured soils located along ...

Rapid deforestation in Sumatra, Indonesia is presently occurring due to the expansion of palm oil and rubber production, fueled by an increasing global demand. Our study aimed to assess changes in soil-N cycling rates with conversion of forest to oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) and rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) plantations. In Jambi Province, Sumatra, Indonesia, we selected two soil landscapes - loa...

In this report, the author first describes the design of a portable model foundation loading device capable of applying square wave impulses with forces up to 1200 lbs. for durations between 10 and 120 milliseconds. The model loading device is used to simulate the load on the non-recoiling parts of a howitter foundation in both sands and clays. An important part of this program is the compariso...

The mineral calcium sulphate transforms from anhydrite through bassanite to gypsum and then can convert back to bassanite and anhydrite. This transformation of calcium sulphate causes volume change that adds to the potential hazards with indigenous soils containing expansive clay minerals. Heave and settlement are the most important geotechnical problems associated with many argillaceous soils ...

The biological stability of soil organic carbon (SOC) is influenced by the chemical structure of SOC and the existence of various mechanisms of protection offered by soil minerals and their spatial arrangement within the soil matrix (Baldock and Skjemstad, 2000). In addition to defining the potential availability of SOC to decomposer organisms living in soils, the chemical structure of SOC also...

Radioactive caesium pollution resulting from Fukushima Dai-ichi and Chernobyl nuclear plant accidents involves strong interactions between Cs+ and clays, especially vermiculite-type minerals. In acidic soil environments, such as in Fukushima area, vermiculite is subjected to weathering processes, resulting in aluminization. The crystal structure of aluminized clays and its implications for Cs+ ...

Two soil profile sequences on paragneiss debris in the Val di Rabbi (Northern Italy) along an altitude gradient ranging from 1200 to 2400 m a.s.l. were studied to evaluate the effect of aspect on the weathering of clay minerals. All the soils had a coarse structure, a sandy texture and a low pH. Greater weathering intensities of clay-sized phyllosilicates (greater content of smectites) were obs...