Trace element fractions water-soluble

Sediment may be added by bulk mixing via imbricate thnisting (Bebout and Barton 2002), dehydration (Class et al. 2000), or melting (Johnson and Plank 1999). The latter two may differ in their P-T conditions and, therefore, residual mineralogy as well as relevant partition coefficients. In general, fluids are less effective transport agents than melts (i.e., trace elements are more soluble in melt than in pure water or even brine), but fluid/solid partitioning can fractionate some elements, notably Ba-Th and U-Th, more than melt/solid. However, as pressure increases, the distinction between fluid and melt decreases as their mutual solubility increases and they approach a critical end-point. 

The bioavailability of trace elements in soil-water-plant ecosystems of arid zones is largely determined by their partitioning between solution and solid-phase components. The redistribution and transformation of trace elements among solid-phase components under various biogeochemical conditions strongly adjust their lability and bioavailability. Soluble, exchangeable and organically bound forms are bioavailable to plants. The carbonate bound fraction represents a reservoir of potentially bio-available trace elements to plants. In paddy soils, the amorphous Fe/Al oxide fraction contributes to trace element availability as well. 

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