Calcium-organic matter complexes

Iron oxide may also increase the beneficial effects of organic matter (Chesters et al., 1957). McIntyre (1956) concluded from studies of soils in South Australia that the chief influence on the structure of these soils is iron acting through the medium of an iron-organic matter complex. In semi-arid soils calcium and magnesium carbonates may also act as cements. These materials are carried in the soil percolate and a portion is deposited on aggregates, or may form hardpans at lower levels. 

Fluoride is a natural component of most types of soil, in which it is mainly bound in complexes and not readily leached. The major source of free fluoride ion in soil is the weathering and dissolution of fluoride rich rock that depends on the natural solubility of the fluoride compound in question, pH, and the presence of other minerals and compounds and of water. The major parameters that control fluoride fixation in soil through adsorption, anion exchange, precipitation, formation of mixed solids and complexes are aluminium, calcium, iron, pH, organic matter and clay [19,20]. 

Divalent cations, particularly calcium, have been shown to enhance fouling of membranes with natural organic matter (NOM).3 Because is it s acidic nature, NOM can form complexes with dissolved metal ions. The strongest bonds occur with calcium. This is a function of the size of the metal ion, it s electronic charge, and the... 

Recent measurements of calcium and alkalinity in the ocean above the calcite saturation horizon (Milliman et ai, 1999 Chen, 2002) suggest dissolution in supersaturated waters. The proposed mechanisms are variations of the organic matter driven CaC03 dissolution mechanism. In these cases the authors suggest that microenvironments in falling particulate material (Milliman et al., 1999) or anerobic dissolution in sediments of the continental shelves and marginal seas (Chen, 2002) are locations of CaC03 dissolution. As the details and accuracy of measurements improve, thermodynamic and kinetic mechanisms required to interpret the results become more and more complex. 

At least part of the reason for these observations must be that precipitation is severely inhibited by organics such as humic acids (Berner et ai, 1978). Mitterer and co-authors (e.g., Mitterer and Cunningham, 1985) have explored the possible role of organic matter in cement formation. These authors suggested that, whereas some types of organic matter inhibit precipitation, other types, particularly those rich in aspartic acid, favor precipitation by complexing calcium. Inhibition of precipitation, coupled with slow transfer of fresh supersaturated seawater into sediment pores, seems to account for the lack of extensive early cementation. 

The three examples of the effects of pedochemical weathering on the surface structures in soil clays just described illustrate the complexity of the reactive solid materials in natural soils. To these examples can be added many others, including the formation of iron oxyhydroxide or calcium carbonate coatings on the external surfaces (as opposed to interlayer surfaces) of phyllosilicates, the development of thick envelopes of colloidal organic matter on aggregates of metal oxides and aluminosilicates, and the... 

The reduced mobility of radium in comparison with uranium is explained by the solubility difference between the two elements, which occur in nature as sulphates and carbonates at 18°C radium sulphate = 1.410" g/1 uranyl sulphate = 205 g/1 radium carbonate is insoluble and uranyl carbonate = 60g/l. With the acidity and alkalinity of water, however, radium solubility changes. The radium content of water also depends on the salt concentration of certain elements—mainly alkaline chloride (radium replaces sodium). Radium precipitates with complexes of barium (S04Ba) and with calcium carbonates (travertine). Radium is also fixed by clay, organic matter, iron and manganese hydroxides. 

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