Pedosphere 8(2): 135--142, 1998
ISSN 1002-0160/CN 32-1315/P
©1998 Soil Science Society of China
Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press
| Changes in soil solution Cu and Zn following application of alkaline stab ilised sewage sludgeand gamma irradiation |
| YAN Wei-Dong1, LUO Yong-Ming2 and P. CHRISTIE2 |
1 Institute of Soil Science, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O Box 821, Nanjing 210008 (China)
2 Agricultural and Environmental Science Department, the Queens University of Belfast, Newforge Lane, Belfast BT9 5PX (UK) |
| ABSTRACT |
| A glasshouse pot experiment was conducted to study changes in the solubility of copper and zinc in the soil-plant system following heavy application of sewage sludge and partial sterilisation of the sludge/soil mixture. A slightly acid sandy loam was mixed with alkaline stabilised and composted urban sewage sludge solids (Agri-Soil, 180 t hm-2), and the soil/sludge mixture was-irradiated (10 kGy). The contrasts without the application of sewage sludge and-irradiation were also included in the experiment. Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne cv. Magella) was grown on irradiated and unirradiated soils for 50 days. Soil solution samples were obtained using soil suction samplers immediately before plant transplantation and every ten days thereafter. The soil solution samples were used directly for determination of Cu and Zn, toget her with pH, electrical conductivity (EC) and absorbance at wavelength 360 nm (A360). Applicat ion of Agri-Soil led to a substantial increase in dissolved Cu and a significant decrease in dissolved Zn in the soil solution and these effects were accompanied by increased soil solution pH, EC and A360. The alkaline sludge product (Agri-Soil) in combination with-irradiation also led to a pronounced elevation of Cu and A360 but a marked decline in EC, indicating an increase in dissolved organic compounds and a decrease in the ionic strength of the soil solution. The dissolved Cu and Zn, EC and A360 usually decreased while the pH increased after plant grow th for 50 days. |
| Key Words: copper, γ irradiation, sewage sludge, soil solution, zinc |
| Citation: Yan, W. D., Luo, Y. M. and Christie, P. 1998. Changes in soil solution Cu and Zn following application of alkaline stab ilised sewage sludgeand gamma irradiation. Pedosphere. 8(2): 135-142. |
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