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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 61(8)

Complexity of clay minerals and its effects on silicon dynamics in hypersaline coastal wetland soils, Brazil

Lucas Resmini Sartor https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9827-8657 A * , Gabriel Ramatis Pugliese Andrade https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2110-5357 B , Samantha C. Ying https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1247-2529 C , Robert C. Graham C , Rodrigo Santana Macedo D and Tiago Osório Ferreira https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4088-7457 E
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Agronomy, Federal University of Sergipe, Campus do Sertão, Nossa Senhora da Glória, Sergipe, Brazil.

B Soil Laboratory, State University of North Fluminence Darcy Ribeiro, Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

C Environmental Sciences Department, University of California, Riverside, CA, USA.

D State University of Paraíba, Technology and Science Center, Campina Grande, Brazil.

E Department of Soil Science, Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil.

* Correspondence to: lrsartor@academico.ufs.br

Handling Editor: Irshad Bibi

Soil Research 61(8) 799-816 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR22245
Submitted: 10 November 2022  Accepted: 24 July 2023  Published: 14 August 2023

© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing

Abstract

Context

Tidal dynamics and high evaporative rates in hypersaline tidal flat (HTF) soils favour a range of clay reactions and the formation of complex clay assemblages. HTFs have a geochemical environment conducive to mineral reactions, and therefore, clay mineral alteration controls essential nutrients in coastal wetlands.

Aims

The crystallochemical characteristics of clay minerals from two HTFs were studied to provide insights into the complexity of fine clay assemblages in HTF soils and their effects on Si biogeochemistry.

Methods

The fine clay fraction (<0.2 μm) from these HTFs were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) modelling, XRF, FTIR, TEM–EDS, and silicon sequential extractions.

Key results

The results have indicated the presence of endmembers and R0 mixed-layered minerals such as kaolinite, smectite, illite, kaolinite–smectite (K–S), kaolinite–illite (K–I), illite–smectite (I–S), and illite–vermiculite (I–V). In general, K–S was the dominant mineral in the samples, occurring in a range of kaolinite layers. Alteration of detrital kaolinite to other mixed-layered minerals occurs in soils, leading to silicon removal from the soil solution because of mineral genesis. There is Mg enrichment at the expense of Al in the samples, and bio-opal appears to be the source of Si for the kaolinite alteration process.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that clay authigenesis is an important factor controlling Si dynamics in HTF soils, acting as a sink of Si during the formation of new clay phases.

Implications

Chemical reactions involving clay minerals are critical for deepening our understanding of the biogeochemistry of wetland soils.

Keywords: biogenic opal, biogeochemistry, clay, fluvisols, kaolinite–smectite, mixed-layered minerals, salt-affected soils, wetlands.

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