Sulfate and Calcium Movement in an Allophanic Soil—The Relevance of Ion‐Pair Adsorption in the Soil–Plant System

Abstract

Cooperative adsorption involving anions and cations, termed ion-pair adsorption (IPA), is reported to increase the retention of some ions in certain soils. Sulfate and calcium can exhibit such interaction, and this affects their movement through the soil. Ion-pair adsorption is shown here in miscible displacement experiments with a variable-charge soil. The relevance of IPA under more realistic conditions is further investigated in a pot experiment. Rapeseed (Brassica napus) was grown at two different irrigation regimes and with two sulfur fertilizer sources. Calcium sulfate (CaSO 4 ?2H 2 O) was used to induce IPA in contrast to potassium sulfate (K 2 SO 4 ). The results suggest that IPA reduces sulfate and calcium leaching only in the short term. Continued irrigation dissipates the differences between the two fertilizer sources. Final soil ion concentrations and the plant uptake could not be related to IPA, evidencing the short-term relevance of IPA. The influence of IPA on the bioavailability of calcium and sulfate to plants still demands further study.