Explores soil as a nexus for water, chemicals, and biologically coupled nutrient cycling

Soil is a narrow but critically important zone on Earth's surface. It is the interface for water and carbon recycling from above and part of the cycling of sediment and rock from below.

Hydrogeology, Chemical Weathering, and Soil Formation places chemical weathering and soil formation in its geological, climatological, biological and hydrological perspective.

Volume highlights include:

The evolution of soils over 3.25 billion yearsBasic processes contributing to soil formationHow chemical weathering and soil formation relate to water and energy fluxesThe role of pedogenesis in geomorphologyRelationships between climate soils and biotaSoils, aeolian deposits, and crusts as geologic dating toolsImpacts of land-use change on soils

The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. Its publications disseminate scientific knowledge and provide resources for researchers, students, and professionals.

Find out more about this book from thisQ&A with the Editors

Allen Hunt, Wright University, USA.

Markus Egli, University of Zurich, Switzerland.

Boris Faybishenko, Berkeley National Laboratory, USA.

List of Contributors ix

Preface xi

Part I: Soil Definition 1

1. Soil as a System: A HistoryRichard J. Huggett 3

Part II: Soil History 21

2. Soils, Chemical Weathering, and Climate Change in Earth HistorySteven G. Driese, Lee C. Nordt, and Gary E. Stinchcomb 23

Part III: Soil Formation Processes 67

3. Soil Formation, Vegetation Growth, and Water Balance: A Theory for BudykoAllen Hunt 69

4. Earthworms, Plants, and SoilsRenée-Claire Le Bayon, Géraldine Bullinger, Andreas Schomburg, Pascal Turberg, Philip Brunner, Rodolphe Schlaepfer, and Claire Guenat 81

5. Tephra for the Trees? Geochemical Constraints on Weathering and Tephra Inputs to Soils on New Zealands North IslandClaire E. Lukens and Kevin P. Norton 105

6. The Origin and Formation of Clay Minerals in Alpine SoilsMarkus Egli and Aldo Mirabella 121

Part IV: Application of Chemical Weathering/Soil Formation in Other Disciplines 139

7. Weathering Rinds as Tools for Constraining Reaction Kinetics and Duration of Weathering at the Clast-ScalePeter B. Sak 141

8. Unraveling Loess Records of Climate Change from the Chinese Loess Plateau Using Process-Based ModelsPeter A. Finke, Keerthika Nirmani Ranathunga Arachchige, Ann Verdoodt, Yanyan Yu, and Qiuzhen Yin 163

9. Relations Between Soil Development and LandslidesArnaud J.A.M. Temme 177

10A. Soils in Agricultural Engineering: Effect of Land-Use Management Systems on Mechanical Soil ProcessesRainer F. Horn 187

10B. Soil Strength and Carbon SequestrationRattan Lal 201

Part V: Integrated Studies of Soils 205

11. Chemical Weathering in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, AntarcticaW. Berry Lyons, Deborah L. Leslie, and Michael N. Gooseff 207

12. Carbon and Nutrient Fluxes Within Southeastern Piedmont Critical ZonesTodd C. Rasmussen, Maryam Foroughi, and Daniel Markewitz 217

13. Is This Steady State? Weathering and Critical Zone Architecture in Gordon Gulch, Colorado Front RangeSuzanne P. Anderson, Patrick J. Kelly, Noah Hoffman, Katherine Barnhart, Kevin Befus, and William Ouimet 231

14. Where Are We and Where Are We Going? Pedogenesis Through Chemical Weathering, Hydrologic Fluxes, and BioturbationAllen Hunt, Markus Egli, and Boris Faybishenko 253

Index 270