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REVIEW (Open Access)

Understanding extractable metal species relationships with phosphorus sorption and organic carbon in soils

Bright E. Amenkhienan https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9629-141X A B * , Feike Dijkstra A , Charles Warren https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0788-4713 A and Balwant Singh https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9751-2971 A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

B Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Edo State, Nigeria.


Handling Editor: Melanie Kah

Soil Research 62, SR24118 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR24118
Submitted: 15 July 2024  Accepted: 6 December 2024  Published: 17 December 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Iron and aluminium oxides are important in phosphate sorption capacity of soils and preservation of soil organic carbon (SOC). However, there is a complex interplay between among Fe/Al oxides, SOC, and P in soils.

Aims

We aimed to evaluate the relationships between extractable Fe and Al, SOC concentration and P sorption capacity using generalised additive mixed models.

Methods

We compiled and analysed data from 77 published articles from Scopus and Web of Science.

Key results

Ammonium oxalate extractable aluminium (Alox) had astrong significant relationship (P < 0.0001) with P sorption capacity, but this was stronger with dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate extractable aluminium (Ald). A positive 1:1 relationship between Alox and Ald suggests that the pool of Al dissolved by ammonium oxalate and dithionite citrate bicarbonate (DCB) was nearly similar. A strong significant relationship was found between ammonium oxalate extractable iron (Feox) and Alox, and SOC concentration, but Alox had a stronger statistically significant relationship with SOC concentration. This may be due to various interactions of SOC with Al oxides, which can directly or indirectly influence P sorption capacity in soils.

Conclusions

From these relationships, we show that: (1) that Ald is a better predictor for P sorption capacity than Alox; and (2) Alox is a better predictor of SOC than Feox.

Implications

DCB and ammonium oxalate extractable Al (and Fe) that represent Al in crystalline and poorly crystalline, or amorphous form of Al may be used as a routine soil test, and may be able to predict P sorption capacity and SOC preservation potential, particularly in acid soils.

Keywords: aluminium, ammonium oxalate, dithionite citrate bicarbonate, extractable metals, iron, phosphorus sorption capacity, relationship, soil organic carbon.

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