Inorganic Soil Constituents Sensitive to Varying Redox Conditions

Inorganic soil constituents sensitive to varying redox conditions, such as hydrated iron oxide, vivianite, siderite, iron (II) sulfides, and jarosite, are analyzed using optical and electron microscopes, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Many of these minerals are sourced from paddy field soils, which undergo reducing and oxidizing conditions in the plow layer every year. Iron mottles formed at the soil redox interface in the presence of reducing and oxidizing conditions provide significant visual evidence of varying redox conditions in soil. Polished sections were used to examine the elemental distributions and morphological properties of the mottles. One type of iron mottles is formed around rice roots by oxygen diffusion from the roots. They are cylindrical in form and include soil matrix minerals. Other type of iron mottles is formed on the surfaces of irregular or vesicular pores by oxygen diffusion through soil pores after drainage. These mottles contain few soil matrix minerals. In association with iron, the distribution of phosphate is strongly affected by changes in redox conditions in paddy field soils with low active Al content.