Nitrate Sorption in an Agricultural Soil Profile. (17th July 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hamdi, Wissem; Gamaoun, Faten; Pelster, David E.; Seffen, Mongi
• Other Names: Trevisan Marco Academic Editor.
• Is Part Of: Applied and environmental soil science. Volume 2013(2013)
• Publication Date: 2013-07-17
• Subjects: Soil science -- Periodicals; Soils -- Environmental aspects -- Periodicals; 631.405
• DOI: 10.1155/2013/597824
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1687-7667

Abstract

Abstract : Increasing concentrations ofNO 3 - in surface water and groundwater can cause ecological and public health effects and has come under increased scrutiny by both environmental scientists and regulatory agencies. For many regions though, including the Sahel of Tunisia, little is known about theNO 3 - sorption capacity of soils. In this project we measuredNO 3 - sorption by a profile of an iso-humic soil from Chott Meriem, Tunisia. Soil samples were collected from four soil depths (0–25, 25–60, 60–90, and 90–120 cm) on 1 June 2011, and their sorption capacity was determined using batch experiments under laboratory conditions. The effects of contact time, the initial concentration, and the soil-solution ratio onNO 3 - sorption were investigated. In general, the results suggested thatNO 3 - was weakly retained by the Chott Meriem soil profile. The quantity ofNO 3 - sorption increased with depth, contact time, initial concentration, and soil-solution ratios. To evaluate the sorption capacities of the soil samples at concentrations ranging between 25 and 150 mg L −1 experimental data were fitted to both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm sorption models. The results indicated that Freundlich model was better for describingNO 3 - sorption in this soil profile.