Abstract
We measured buffer capacity for major horizons of forest soils from four locations in New England by titration of field-moist samples with either HCl or NaOH. Titration curves for O horizons were nearly linear over a wide pH range, that is, buffer capacity was independent of pH. Titration curves for mineral horizons were S-shaped with ambient pH roughly in the middle of the least buffered part of the curve. We also measured exchangeable acid cations and NH4 + in unbuffered KCl extractions and exchangeable bases in NH4OAc extraction at pH 7. Ca+2 and Mg+2 in KCl extractions at ambient pH were only slightly less than in NH4OAc extractions at pH 7, implying that exchangeable bases did not depend much on the extraction pH. The O horizons were generally highly base saturated at ambient pH even though their pH was low; mineral soils had lower base saturation. Buffer capacity measured over the first 0.5 pH unit to the acid side depended strongly on organic matter fraction in the sample. All soil materials studied had buffer capacities per unit organic mass of about 100 meq kg sup−1inf0 pH−1. Acid rain at pH 4.0 in New England would take at least several decades to lower pH of the soil profile by a whole pH unit.
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Anthony Federer, C., Hornbeck, J.W. The buffer capacity of forest soils in new England. Water Air Soil Pollut 26, 163–173 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00292066
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00292066