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1.
Located in the uplands of the Valley and Ridge physiographic province of Pennsylvania, the Susquehanna/Shale Hills Critical Zone Observatory (SSHO) is a tectonically quiescent, first-order catchment developed on shales of the Silurian Rose Hill Formation. We used soil cores augered at the highest point of the watershed and along a subsurface water flowline on a planar hillslope to investigate mineral transformations and physical/chemical weathering fluxes. About 25 m of bedrock was also drilled to estimate parent composition. Depletion of carbonate at tens of meters of depth in bedrock may delineate a deep carbonate-weathering front. Overlying this, extending from ∼6 m below the bedrock-soil interface up into the soil, is the feldspar dissolution front. In the soils, depletion profiles for K, Mg, Si, Fe, and Al relative to the bedrock define the illite and chlorite reaction fronts. When combined with a cosmogenic nuclide-derived erosion rate on watershed sediments, these depletion profiles are consistent with dissolution rates that are several orders of magnitudes slower for chlorite (1-5 × 10−17 mol m−2 s−1) and illite (2-9 × 10−17 mol m−2 s−1) than observed in the laboratory. Mineral reactions result in formation of vermiculite, hydroxy-interlayered vermiculite, and minor kaolinite. During weathering, exchangeable divalent cations are replaced by Al as soil pH decreases.The losses of Mg and K in the soils occur largely as solute fluxes; in contrast, losses of Al and Fe are mostly as downslope transport of fine particles. Physical erosion of bulk soils also occurs: results from a steady-state model demonstrate that physical erosion accounts for about half of the total denudation at the ridgetop and midslope positions. Chemical weathering losses of Mg, Na, and K are higher in the upslope positions likely because of the higher degree of chemical undersaturation in porewaters. Chemical weathering slows down in the valley floor and Al and Si even show net accumulation. The simplest model for the hillslope that is consistent with all observations is a steady-state, clay weathering-limited system where soil production rates decrease with increasing soil thickness.  相似文献   

2.
《Applied Geochemistry》2001,16(7-8):931-937
Weathering in an upland catchment on granitic parent material has been studied by chemical and mineralogical analyses of soils. Long-term weathering rates for base cations, calculated from chemical analyses of the mineral horizons from soil profiles using Zr as an internal, immobile, index element, are among the smallest recorded for Scottish soils (1.7–3.1 meq m−2 a−1), indicating that these soils are susceptible to acid deposition. Sodium is the base cation lost to the greatest extent from the soils, due to weathering of plagioclase feldspar, mainly in the coarse size-fractions. Calcium is lost not only from plagioclase feldspar, but also from hornblende, grains of which show dissolution etch pits and denticulate surface features when examined by scanning electron microscopy. Weathering of hornblende, present in basic inclusions in the granite, is a significant weathering process in these soils. A range of values for 87Sr/86Sr ratios in stream-waters confirms the spatial variability of the material supplying Ca to the streams. The current weathering rate, calculated from input–output budgets to be 28.9 meq m−2 a−1, is much greater than the long-term weathering rate, but small compared to other catchments on similar parent material.  相似文献   

3.
 The formation of base cations through mineral weathering in forest soils is one of the key parameters in calculating critical loads. Weathering rates in Finland have been estimated using a variety of methods. In the first approach, three weathering rate categories were assigned to soils according to the bedrock type. The second approach was based on an empirical relationship obtained from Swedish field studies. Changes in zirconium content through the soil profile were used to estimate element losses in soil after deglaciation. These calculated losses correlated well with the total calcium and magnesium concentrations in till C-horizons and the effective temperature sum (ETS). Comprehensive geochemical data for the parent till fine fraction (<0.06 mm) was available through the reconnaissance scale till geochemical mapping program of the Geological Survey of Finland (GSF). The equations obtained from Swedish studies were based on the use of the coarse (<2.0 mm) till fraction, and the differences in element concentrations between the fine and coarse size fractions remained a potential source of uncertainty estimating overall weathering rates. In the third approach, new geochemical data from the <2.0 mm till fraction from southern Finland were used to make new weathering rate estimates. The use of soil geochemistry instead of bedrock map classification clearly led to an improvement in the estimates of soil weathering rates in glacied terrains. The use of the fine till fraction (<0.06 mm) in the zirconium approach generally resulted in overestimations of the weathering rate. The new geochemical data for the coarse till fraction (<2 mm) are now consistent with the input requirements of the zirconium method, although the results still require further evaluation. Finnish soil profiles have a shorter weathering history than most of the Swedish ones and the uppermost layer in Finnish podsols has in some cases developed in a different till layer than the C-horizon. Received: 15 October 1995 · Accepted: 8 March 1996  相似文献   

4.
We investigated chemical weathering in a high elevation granitic environment in three selected watersheds located in the Pyrenees (France). The sites were located on glacial deposits derived from similar Hercynian (∼300 Ma) granites characterized by the occurrence of zoned plagioclases and trace calcic phases (epidote, prehnite, sphene, apatite). The surface waters at those sites show high Ca/Na molar ratios (>1) which could not be explained by the dissolution of the major plagioclase (oligoclase) present in the rocks. The coupled approach of investigating stream water chemistry and the mineralogy and chemistry of rocks and soils allowed us to explore the role of the weathering of trace calcic minerals in calcium export at the watershed scale. The weathering of the trace calcic minerals which represent ∼ 1% of the total rock volume are responsible for more than 90% of the calcium export at the sites. Annual cationic fluxes (∼ 23.104 eq/km2/yr) calculated for the Estibère watershed are among the highest reported for high elevation systems draining granitic rocks and ∼ 80% of this annual cationic flux can be attributed to the weathering of trace calcic phases. Calculations based on isotopic values (87Sr/86Sr) go in the same direction. Except apatite, the trace calcic phases appear to be mainly silicates, thus the type of chemical weathering observed in the Estibère watershed may have an influence on atmospheric CO2 consumption by granite weathering. However, comparison with other watersheds draining granitic environments worldwide, and with the two other sites in the Pyrenees, indicate that the role of trace calcic phases is important in most young environments exposed to chemical weathering (e.g., high elevation catchments on glacial deposits). Other factors such as the date of glacial retreat, the physical denudation rate, the hydrological functioning of the watershed and the nature and structure of the soil cover are also important.  相似文献   

5.
We explored changes in the relative importance of carbonate vs. silicate weathering as a function of landscape surface age by examining the Ca/Sr and Sr isotope systematics of a glacial soil chronosequence located in the Raikhot watershed within the Himalaya of northern Pakistan. Bedrock in the Raikhot watershed primarily consists of silicate rock (Ca/Sr ≈ 0.20 μmol/nmol, 87Sr/86Sr ≈ 0.77 to 1.2) with minor amounts of disseminated calcite (Ca/Sr ≈ 0.98 to 5.3 μmol/nmol, 87Sr/86Sr ≈ 0.79 to 0.93) and metasedimentary carbonate (Ca/Sr ≈ 1.0 to 2.8 μmol/nmol, 87Sr/86Sr ≈ 0.72 to 0.82). Analysis of the exchangeable, carbonate, and silicate fractions of seven soil profiles ranging in age from ∼0.5 to ∼55 kyr revealed that carbonate dissolution provides more than ∼90% of the weathering-derived Ca and Sr for at least 55 kyr after the exposure of rock surfaces, even though carbonate represents only ∼1.0 wt% of fresh glacial till. The accumulation of carbonate-bearing dust deposited on the surfaces of older landforms partly sustains the longevity of the carbonate weathering flux. As the average landscape surface age in the Raikhot watershed increases, the Ca/Sr and 87Sr/86Sr ratios released by carbonate weathering decrease from ∼3.6 to ∼0.20 μmol/nmol and ∼0.84 to ∼0.72, respectively. The transition from high to low Ca/Sr ratios during weathering appears to reflect the greater solubility of high Ca/Sr ratio carbonate relative to low Ca/Sr ratio carbonate. These findings suggest that carbonate weathering controls the dissolved flux of Sr emanating from stable Himalayan landforms comprising mixed silicate and carbonate rock for tens of thousands of years after the mechanical exposure of rock surfaces to the weathering environment.  相似文献   

6.
Silicate weathering of soil-mantled slopes in an active Alpine landscape   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  
Despite being located on high, steep, actively uplifting, and formerly glaciated slopes of the Swiss Central Alps, soils in the upper Rhone Valley are depleted by up to 50% in cations relative to their parent bedrock. This depletion was determined by a mass loss balance based on Zr as a refractory element. Both Holocene weathering rates and physical erosion rates of these slopes are unexpectedly low, as measured by cosmogenic 10Be-derived denudation rates. Chemical depletion fractions, CDF, range from 0.12 to 0.48, while the average soil chemical weathering rate is 33 ± 15 t km−2 yr−1. Both the cosmogenic nuclide-derived denudation rates and model calculations suggest that these soils have reached a weathering steady-state since deglaciation 15 ky ago. The weathering signal varies with elevation and hillslope morphology. In addition, the chemical weathering rates decrease with elevation indicating that temperature may be a dominant controlling factor on weathering in these high Alpine basins. Model calculations suggest that chemical weathering rates are limited by reaction kinetics and not the supply rate of fresh material. We compare hillslope and catchment-wide weathering fluxes with modern stream cation flux, and show that high relief, bare-rock slopes exhibit much lower chemical weathering rates despite higher physical erosion rates. The low weathering fluxes from rocky, rapidly eroding slopes allow for the broader implication that mountain building, while elevating overall denudation rates, may not cause increased chemical weathering rates on hillslopes. In order for this sediment to be weathered, intermediate storage, for instance in floodplains, is required.  相似文献   

7.
An experimental study was carried out in order to evaluate the impact of nitrogen fertiliser-induced acidification in carbonated soils. Undisturbed soil columns containing different carbonate content were sampled in the field. Fertiliser spreading was simulated by NH4Cl addition on top of the soil column. Soil solution composition (mainly nitrate and base cations) was studied at the soil column’s base. Nitrification occurred to a different extent depending on soil type. Higher nitrification rates were observed in calcareous soils. In all the soil types, strong correlations between leached base cation and nitrate concentrations were observed. Regression coefficients between base cations, nitrate and chloride were used to determine the dominant processes occurring following NH4Cl spreading. In non-carbonated soils, nitrogen nitrification induced base cation leaching and soil acidification. In carbonated soils, no change of soil pH was observed. However, fertilisers induced a huge cation leaching. Carbonate mineral weathering led to the release of base cations, which replenished the soil exchangeable complex. Carbonated mineral weathering buffered acidification. Since direct weathering might have occurred without atmospheric CO2 consumption, the use of nitrogen fertiliser on carbonated soil induces a change in the cation and carbon budgets. When the results of these experiments are extrapolated on a global scale to the surface of fertilised areas lying on carbonate, carbonated reactions with N fertilisers would imply an additional flux of 5.7 × 1012 mol yr−1 of Ca + Mg. The modifications of weathering reactions in cultivated catchments and the ability of nitrogen fertilisers to significantly modify the CO2 budget should be included in carbon global cycle assessment.  相似文献   

8.
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9.
Chemical weathering of silicate minerals has long been known as a sink for atmospheric CO2, and feedbacks between weathering and climate are believed to affect global climate. While warmer temperatures are believed to increase rates of weathering, weathering in cool climates can be accelerated by increased mineral exposure due to mechanical weathering by ice. In this study, chemical weathering of silicate minerals is investigated in a small temperate watershed. The Jamieson Creek watershed is covered by mature coniferous forest and receives high annual precipitation (4000 mm), mostly in the form of rainfall, and is underlain by quartz diorite bedrock and glacial till. Analysis of pore water concentration gradients indicates that weathering in hydraulically unsaturated ablation till is dominated by dissolution of plagioclase and hornblende. However, a watershed scale solute mass balance indicates high relative fluxes of K and Ca, indicating preferential leaching of these solutes possibly from the relatively unweathered lodgement till. Weathering rates for plagioclase and hornblende calculated from a watershed scale solute mass balance are similar in magnitude to rates determined using pore water concentration gradients.When compared to the Rio Icacos basin in Puerto Rico, a pristine tropical watershed with similar annual precipitation and bedrock, but with dissimilar regolith properties, fluxes of weathering products in stream discharge from the warmer site are 1.8 to 16.2-fold higher, respectively, and regolith profile-averaged plagioclase weathering rates are 3.8 to 9.0-fold higher. This suggests that the Arrhenius effect, which predicts a 3.5- to 9-fold increase in the dissolution rate of plagioclase as temperature is increased from 3.4° to 22 °C, may explain the greater weathering fluxes and rates at the Rio Icacos site. However, more modest differences in K and Ca fluxes between the two sites are attributed to accelerated leaching of those solutes from glacial till at Jamieson Creek. Our findings suggest that under conditions of high rainfall and favorable topography, weathering rates of silicate minerals in warm tropical systems will tend to be higher than in cool temperate systems, even if the temperate system is has been perturbed by an episode of glaciation that deposits regolith high in fresh mineral surface area.  相似文献   

10.
The soils of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile have long been known to contain large quantities of unusual salts, yet the processes that form these soils are not yet fully understood. We examined the morphology and geochemistry of soils on post-Miocene fans and stream terraces along a south-to-north (27° to 24° S) rainfall transect that spans the arid to hyperarid transition (21 to ∼2 mm rain y−1). Landform ages are ? 2 My based on cosmogenic radionuclide concentrations in surface boulders, and Ar isotopes in interbedded volcanic ash deposits near the driest site indicate a maximum age of 2.1 My. A chemical mass balance analysis that explicitly accounts for atmospheric additions was used to quantify net changes in mass and volume as a function of rainfall. In the arid (21 mm rain y−1) soil, total mass loss to weathering of silicate alluvium and dust (−1030 kg m−2) is offset by net addition of salts (+170 kg m−2). The most hyperarid soil has accumulated 830 kg m−2 of atmospheric salts (including 260 kg sulfate m−2 and 90 kg chloride m−2), resulting in unusually high volumetric expansion (120%) for a soil of this age. The composition of both airborne particles and atmospheric deposition in passive traps indicates that the geochemistry of the driest soil reflects accumulated atmospheric influxes coupled with limited in-soil chemical transformation and loss. Long-term rates of atmospheric solute addition were derived from the ion inventories in the driest soil, divided by the landform age, and compared to measured contemporary rates. With decreasing rainfall, the soil salt inventories increase, and the retained salts are both more soluble and present at shallower depths. All soils generally exhibit vertical variation in their chemistry, suggesting slow and stochastic downward water movement, and greater climate variability over the past 2 My than is reflected in recent (∼100 y) rainfall averages. The geochemistry of these soils shows that the transition from arid to hyperarid rainfall levels marks a fundamental geochemical threshold: in wetter soils, the rate and character of chemical weathering results in net mass loss and associated volumetric collapse after 105 to 106 years, while continuous accumulation of atmospheric solutes in hyperarid soils over similar timescales results in dramatic volumetric expansion. The specific geochemistry of hyperarid soils is a function of atmospheric sources, and is expected to vary accordingly at other hyperarid sites. This work identifies key processes in hyperarid soil formation that are likely to be independent of location, and suggests that analogous processes may occur on Mars.  相似文献   

11.
Rates of chemical and silicate weathering of the Deccan Trap basalts, India, have been determined through major ion measurements in the headwaters of the Krishna and the Bhima rivers, their tributaries, and the west flowing streams of the Western Ghats, all of which flow almost entirely through the Deccan basalts.Samples (n = 63) for this study were collected from 23 rivers during two consecutive monsoon seasons of 2001 and 2002. The Total dissolved solid (TDS) in the samples range from 27 to 640 mg l−1. The rivers draining the Western Ghats that flow through patches of cation deficient lateritic soils have lower TDS (average: 74 mg l−1), whereas the Bhima (except at origin) and its tributaries that seem to receive Na, Cl, and SO4 from saline soils and anthropogenic inputs have values in excess of 170 mg l−1. Many of the rivers sampled are supersaturated with respect to calcite. The chemical weathering rates (CWR) of “selected” basins, which exclude rivers supersaturated in calcite and which have high Cl and SO4, are in range of ∼3 to ∼60 t km−2 y−1. This yields an area-weighted average CWR of ∼16 t km−2 y−1 for the Deccan Traps. This is a factor of ∼2 lower than that reported for the Narmada-Tapti-Wainganga (NTW) systems draining the more northern regions of the Deccan. The difference can be because of (i) natural variations in CWR among the different basins of the Deccan, (ii) “selection” of river basin for CWR calculation in this study, and (iii) possible contribution of major ions from sources, in addition to basalts, to rivers of the northern Deccan Traps.Silicate weathering rates (SWR) in the selected basins calculated using dissolved Mg as an index varies between ∼3 to ∼60 t km−2 y−1, nearly identical to their CWR. The Ca/Mg and Na/Mg in these rivers, after correcting for rain input, are quite similar to those in average basalts of the region, suggesting near congruent release of Ca, Mg, and Na from basalts to rivers. Comparison of calculated and measured silicate-Ca in these rivers indicates that at most ∼30% of Ca can be of nonsilicate origin, a likely source being carbonates in basalts and sediments.The chemical and silicate weathering rates of the west flowing rivers of the Deccan are ∼4 times higher than the east flowing rivers. This difference is due to the correspondingly higher rainfall and runoff in the western region and thus reemphasises the dominant role of runoff in regulating weathering rates. The silicon weathering rate (SWR) in the Krishna Basin is ∼15 t km−2 y−1, within a factor of ∼2 to those in the Yamuna, Bhagirathi, and Alaknanda basins of the Himalaya, suggesting that under favourable conditions (intense physical weathering, high runoff) granites and the other silicates in the Himalaya weather at rates similar to those of Deccan basalts. The CO2 consumption rate for the Deccan is deduced to be ∼3.6 × 105 moles km−2 y−1 based on the SWR. The rate, though, is two to three times lower than reported for the NTW rivers system; it still reinforces the earlier findings that, in general, basalts weather more rapidly than other silicates and that they significantly influence the atmospheric CO2 budget on long-term scales.  相似文献   

12.
Ectomycorrhiza-forming fungi (EMF) alter the nutrient-acquisition capabilities of vascular plants, and may play an important role in mineral weathering and the partitioning of products of weathering in soils under nutrient-limited conditions. In this study, we isolated the weathering function of Suillus tomentosus in liquid-cultures with biotite micas incubated at room temperature. We hypothesized that the fungus would accelerate weathering by hyphal attachment to biotite surfaces and transmission of nutrient cations via direct exchange into the fungal biomass. We combined a mass-balance approach with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to estimate weathering rates and study dissolution features on biotite surfaces. Weathering of biotite flakes was about 2-3 orders of magnitude faster in shaken liquid-cultures with fungus compared to shaken controls without fungus, but with added inorganic acids. Adding fungus in nonshaken cultures caused a higher dissolution rate than in inorganic pH controls without fungus, but it was not significantly faster than organic pH controls without fungus. The K+, Mg2+ and Fe2+ from biotite were preferentially partitioned into fungal biomass in the shaken cultures, while in the nonshaken cultures, K+ and Mg2+ was lost from biomass and Fe2+ bioaccumulated much less. Fungal hyphae attached to biotite surfaces, but no significant surface changes were detected by SEM. When cultures were shaken, the AFM images of basal planes appeared to be rougher and had abundant dissolution channels, but such channel development was minor in nonshaken conditions. Even under shaken conditions the channels only accounted for only 1/100 of the total dissolution rate of 2.7 × 10−10 mol of biotite m−2 s−1. The results suggest that fungal weathering predominantly occurred not by attachment and direct transfer of nutrients via hyphae, but because of the acidification of the bulk liquid by organic acids, fungal respiration (CO2), and complexation of cations which accelerated dissolution of biotite. Results further suggest that both carbohydrate source (abundant here) and a host with which nutrients are exchanged (missing here) may be required for EMF to exert an important weathering effect in soils. Unsaturated conditions and physical dispersal of nutrient-rich minerals in soils may also confer a benefit for hyphal growth and attachment, and promote the attachment-mediated weathering which has been observed elsewhere on soil mineral surfaces.  相似文献   

13.
Major ion composition of waters, δ13C of its DIC (dissolved inorganic carbon), and the clay mineral composition of bank sediments in the Brahmaputra River System (draining India and Bangladesh) have been measured to understand chemical weathering and erosion and the factors controlling these processes in the eastern Himalaya. The time-series samples, collected biweekly at Guwahati, from the Brahmaputra mainstream, were also analyzed for the major ion composition. Clay mineralogy and chemical index of alteration (CIA) of sediments suggest that weathering intensity is relatively poor in comparison to that in the Ganga basin. This is attributed to higher runoff and associated physical erosion occurring in the Brahmaputra basin. The results of this study show, for the first time, spatial and temporal variations in chemical and silicate erosion rates in the Brahmaputra basin. The subbasins of the Brahmaputra watershed exhibit chemical erosion rates varying by about an order of magnitude. The Eastern Syntaxis basin dominates the erosion with a rate of ∼300 t km−2 y−1, one of the highest among the world river basins and comparable to those reported for some of the basaltic terrains. In contrast, the flat, cold, and relatively more arid Tibetan basin undergoes much slower chemical erosion (∼40 t km−2 y−1). The abundance of total dissolved solids (TDS, 102-203 mg/L) in the time-series samples collected over a period of one year shows variations in accordance with the annual discharge, except one of them, cause for which is attributable to flash floods. Na* (Na corrected for cyclic component) shows a strong positive correlation with Si, indicating their common source: silicate weathering. Estimates of silicate cations (Nasil+Ksil+Casil+Mgsil) suggest that about half of the dissolved cations in the Brahmaputra are derived from silicates, a proportion higher than that for the Ganga system. The CO2 consumption rate due to silicate weathering in the Brahmaputra watershed is ∼6 × 105 moles km−2 y−1; whereas that in the Eastern Syntaxis subbasin is ∼19 × 105 moles km−2 y−1, similar to the estimates for some of the basaltic terrains. This study suggests that the Eastern Syntaxis basin of the Brahmaputra is one of most intensely chemically eroding regions of the globe; and that runoff and physical erosion are the controlling factors of chemical erosion in the eastern Himalaya.  相似文献   

14.
A simple, unifying approach to classifying quantitatively the susceptibility of catchment soils and surface waters to acidification is suggested. In areas subject to a strong maritime influence, such as the UK and substantial parts of NW Europe, wherever soil mineral weathering rates are low and soils are unfertilised, atmospherically derived base cations of maritime origins have a greater effect than those derived from biogeochemical weathering on the exchangeable soil base cations. This is directly reflected in the relative base cation concentrations of the associated drainage waters, which become increasingly Na-dominated. Using 10 sub-catchments of the River Dee in north-eastern Scotland, it is shown here that the extent of Na dominance, the ratio of Na+ to ΣNa++Ca2++Mg2+, at any point in a river provides a quantitative index of the upstream weathering rate and thus of the susceptibility of the river concerned to acidification under diverse flow conditions. Data from a further 58 sub-catchments from the same river system, and from 4 other catchments from around Scotland, were used to validate this theory.  相似文献   

15.
Sr isotope data from soils, water, and atmospheric inputs in a small tropical granitoid watershed in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico constrain soil mineral development, weathering fluxes, and atmospheric deposition. This study provides new information on pedogenic processes and geochemical fluxes that is not apparent in watershed mass balances based on major elements alone. 87Sr/86Sr data reveal that Saharan mineral aerosol dust contributes significantly to atmospheric inputs. Watershed-scale Sr isotope mass balance calculations indicate that the dust deposition flux for the watershed is 2100 ± 700 mg cm−2 ka−1. Nd isotope analyses of soil and saprolite samples provide independent evidence for the presence of Saharan dust in the regolith. Watershed-scale Sr isotope mass balance calculations are used to calculate the overall short-term chemical denudation velocity for the watershed, which agrees well with previous denudation rate estimates based on major element chemistry and cosmogenic nuclides. The dissolved streamwater Sr flux is dominated by weathering of plagioclase and hornblende and partial weathering of biotite in the saprock zone. A steep gradient in regolith porewater 87Sr/86Sr ratio with depth, from 0.70635 to as high as 0.71395, reflects the transition from primary mineral-derived Sr to a combination of residual biotite-derived Sr and atmospherically-derived Sr near the surface, and allows multiple origins of kaolinite to be identified.  相似文献   

16.
A ∼17-m paleosol sequence at Schagen, South Africa, which developed on a serpentinized dunite intrusion in a granite-gneiss terrain ∼2.6 Ga ago, is characterized by an alternating succession of thick (∼1-3 m) carbonate-rich (dolomite and calcite) zones and silicate-rich (serpentines, talc, and quartz) zones; the upper ∼8 m section is especially rich in organic C (up to ∼1.4 wt.%). Petrologic and geochemical data suggest the upper ∼8 m section is composed of at least three soil profiles that developed on: (i) silicate-rich rock fragments (and minerals) that were transported from local sources (serpentinite and granite) by fluvial and/or eolian processes; and (ii) dolomite and calcite zones that formed by locally discharged groundwater. The Mg and Fe in the paleosol sequence were largely supplied from local sources (mostly serpentinite), but the Ca, Sr, and HCO3− were supplied by groundwater that originated from a surrounding granite-gneiss terrain. In the uppermost soil profile, the (Fe is retained, the Fe3+/Fe2+ ratio increases, and ferri-stilpnomelane is abundant. These data suggest the atmospheric pO2 was much greater than ∼10−3.7 atm (>0.1% present atmospheric level [PAL]).The carbonaceous matter in the soils is intimately associated with clays (talc, chlorite, and ferri-stilpnomelane) and occurs mostly as seams (20 μm to 1 mm thick) that parallel the soil horizons. These occurrences, crystallographic structures, H/C ratios, and δ13Corg values (−17.4 to −14.4‰ PDB) suggest that the carbonaceous matter is a remnant of in situ microbial mats, originally ∼1 to ∼20 mm thick. The microbial mats developed: (a) mostly on soil surfaces during the formation of silicate-rich soils, and (b) at the bottom of an evaporating, anoxic, alkaline pond during the precipitation of the Fe-rich dolomite. These δ13Corg values are difficult to be explained by a current popular idea of a methane- and organic haze-rich Archean atmosphere (Pavlov et al., 2001); these values, however, can be easily explained if the microbial mats were composed of cyanobacteria and heterotrophs that utilized the remnants of cyanobacteria in a strongly evaporating environment.  相似文献   

17.
Quantifying long-term rates of chemical weathering and physical erosion is important for understanding the long-term evolution of soils, landscapes, and Earth's climate. Here we describe how long-term chemical weathering rates can be measured for actively eroding landscapes using cosmogenic nuclides together with a geochemical mass balance of weathered soil and parent rock. We tested this approach in the Rio Icacos watershed, Puerto Rico, where independent studies have estimated weathering rates over both short and long timescales. Results from the cosmogenic/mass balance method are consistent with three independent sets of weathering rate estimates, thus confirming that this approach yields realistic measurements of long-term weathering rates. This approach can separately quantify weathering rates from saprolite and from overlying soil as components of the total. At Rio Icacos, nearly 50% of Si weathering occurs as rock is converted to saprolite; in contrast, nearly 100% of Al weathering occurs in the soil. Physical erosion rates are measured as part of our mass balance approach, making it particularly useful for studying interrelationships between chemical weathering and physical erosion. Our data show that chemical weathering rates are tightly coupled with physical erosion rates, such that the relationship between climate and chemical weathering rates may be obscured by site-to-site differences in the rate that minerals are supplied to soil by physical erosion of rock. One can normalize for variations in physical erosion rates using the “chemical depletion fraction,” which measures the fraction of total denudation that is accounted for by chemical weathering. This measure of chemical weathering intensity increases with increasing average temperature and precipitation in data from climatically diverse granitic sites, including tropical Rio Icacos and six temperate sites in the Sierra Nevada, California. Hence, across a wide range of climate regimes, analysis of chemical depletion fractions appears to effectively account for site-to-site differences in physical erosion rates, which would otherwise obscure climatic effects on chemical weathering rates. Our results show that by quantifying rates of physical erosion and chemical weathering together, our mass balance approach can be used to determine the relative importance of climatic and nonclimatic factors in regulating long-term chemical weathering rates.  相似文献   

18.
《Applied Geochemistry》1994,9(2):119-125
Uptake of K, Ca, Mg and Na by vegetation in two upland ecosystems, one situated in andesitic parent material and the other on mica-schists, has been studied in relation to the mineralogy of the soils and the rates of weathering of base cations. Rates of weathering were calculated by two methods: (1) long-term rates were calculated from losses of the elements in soil horizons using Zr as an internal index; (2) current rates were calculated from input-output budgets using rain-water and stream chemistry over a 3 a period. Vegetation uptake can be related in a general way to mineralogy and weathering trends. Most of the K released from the soil appears to be taken up by the vegetation and the content of K in grass-dominated plant communities is related mainly to the availability of K from the weathering of mica. High levels of Ca in the streams indicate an overabundance of Ca which is being released mainly by weathering of plagioclase feldspar. Amounts of Mg in the vegetation are related to variations in the content of chlorite which is easily weathered at both sites.  相似文献   

19.
A study of lateritic soils and samples of ground and river waters was carried out in the Nsimi-Zoetele, a tropical watershed in the southern Cameroon. The Nd isotopic compositions and concentrations of Nd and Sm were determined. It was found that the Nd isotopic composition of the river waters was much more radiogenic than the parent rocks, and that the Nd in the waters is not homogeneous but is carried by different dissolved and complexed components that are not isotopically homogenized. The soil profile shows a regular increase in εNd going from the parent rock (εNd = −36) to εNd = −18 near the top of the profile. The Nd transported in the river is thus not representative of the parent rock but reflects the results of differential weathering of constituent minerals and the redeposition of REE in phosphates and a significant contribution of radiogenic Nd from dust. The concentration of Nd in the river water is far above that found in temperate climate rivers and thus this type of tropical river may play a dominant role in the marine Nd and REE budget. It is suggested that the correlation of REE with DOC is related to DOC fixing some dissolved REE but that the REE in solution is governed by other mechanisms. No major shifts were found in Sm/Nd; however, a regular progression from the parent rock through the lateritic profile was found. The upper laterite profile shows large, almost uniform depletions in all REE below Tb and enrichment above. Complementary behavior was found in the lower part of the section. The concentration of Nd relative to the immobile elements Zr and Ti in the laterite is depleted by a factor of ∼10. Th, Nd and Sm are enriched in the lowest zone sampled and must reflect redeposition of REE from the upper part of the weathering section and is associated with phosphate formation. It is concluded that the soil evolution involves both differential dissolution of primary phases from the parent rock, significant to major input of REE from atmospheric dust from other regions, and the formation of diagenetic phases, particularly phosphates.  相似文献   

20.
The aim of this study is to propose a method to assess the long-term chemical weathering mass balance for a regolith developed on a heterogeneous silicate substratum at the small experimental watershed scale by adopting a combined approach of geophysics, geochemistry and mineralogy. We initiated in 2003 a study of the steep climatic gradient and associated geomorphologic features of the edge of the rifted continental passive margin of the Karnataka Plateau, Peninsular India. In the transition sub-humid zone of this climatic gradient we have studied the pristine forested small watershed of Mule Hole (4.3 km2) mainly developed on gneissic substratum. Mineralogical, geochemical and geophysical investigations were carried out (i) in characteristic red soil profiles and (ii) in boreholes up to 60 m deep in order to take into account the effect of the weathering mantle roots. In addition, 12 Electrical Resistivity Tomography profiles (ERT), with an investigation depth of 30 m, were generated at the watershed scale to spatially characterize the information gathered in boreholes and soil profiles. The location of the ERT profiles is based on a previous electromagnetic survey, with an investigation depth of about 6 m. The soil cover thickness was inferred from the electromagnetic survey combined with a geological/pedological survey.Taking into account the parent rock heterogeneity, the degree of weathering of each of the regolith samples has been defined using both the mineralogical composition and the geochemical indices (Loss on Ignition, Weathering Index of Parker, Chemical Index of Alteration). Comparing these indices with electrical resistivity logs, it has been found that a value of 400 Ohm m delineates clearly the parent rocks and the weathered materials. Then the 12 inverted ERT profiles were constrained with this value after verifying the uncertainty due to the inversion procedure. Synthetic models based on the field data were used for this purpose. The estimated average regolith thickness at the watershed scale is 17.2 m, including 15.2 m of saprolite and 2 m of soil cover.Finally, using these estimations of the thicknesses, the long-term mass balance is calculated for the average gneiss-derived saprolite and red soil. In the saprolite, the open-system mass-transport function τ indicates that all the major elements except Ca are depleted. The chlorite and biotite crystals, the chief sources for Mg (95%), Fe (84%), Mn (86%) and K (57%, biotite only), are the first to undergo weathering and the oligoclase crystals are relatively intact within the saprolite with a loss of only 18%. The Ca accumulation can be attributed to the precipitation of CaCO3 from the percolating solution due to the current and/or the paleoclimatic conditions. Overall, the most important losses occur for Si, Mg and Na with −286 × 106 mol/ha (62% of the total mass loss), −67 × 106 mol/ha (15% of the total mass loss) and −39 × 106 mol/ha (9% of the total mass loss), respectively. Al, Fe and K account for 7%, 4% and 3% of the total mass loss, respectively. In the red soil profiles, the open-system mass-transport functions point out that all major elements except Mn are depleted. Most of the oligoclase crystals have broken down with a loss of 90%. The most important losses occur for Si, Na and Mg with −55 × 106 mol/ha (47% of the total mass loss), −22 × 106 mol/ha (19% of the total mass loss) and −16 × 106 mol/ha (14% of the total mass loss), respectively. Ca, Al, K and Fe account for 8%, 6%, 4% and 2% of the total mass loss, respectively.Overall these findings confirm the immaturity of the saprolite at the watershed scale. The soil profiles are more evolved than saprolite but still contain primary minerals that can further undergo weathering and hence consume atmospheric CO2.  相似文献   

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