• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.396-402
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• 2006

Soil organic carbon has long been considered as the most critical factor to evaluate the soil quality, fertility, and fertilizer prescription. In addition, soil organic carbon may impact on greenhouse gas effects and global warming. Because of that, the management of soil organic carbon is increasingly important not only for improving soil quality but also for managing soil as a greenhouse gas source. Both wet and dry combustion have been used to determine soil organic carbon. Many benefits, such as automation and less labor, could the dry combustion method become more popular. Inorganic form of carbon could overestimate soil organic carbon when the dry combustion method was applied. Determination of soil inorganic carbon may contribute to the improved accuracy of soil organic carbon analysis using dry combustion method. Objectives of this research were 1) to develop soil inorganic carbon determination method using modified digital pressure calcimeter and 2) to evaluate soil organic carbon from calcareous soils using the dry and wet combustion method. Results showed that the significant linear relationship was found between soil inorganic carbon content and pressure calcimeter output. Inorganic carbon ranged from 22% to 28% of total carbon in the calcareous soil samples. Soil organic carbon content by dry combustion for calcareous soil was determined by subtracting inorganic carbon measured by the digital pressure calcimeter from total carbon. Soil organic carbon determined by dry combustion method was significantly correlated with that by wet combustion method. In conclusion, the digital pressure calcimeter may use to improve soil organic carbon determination for the calcareous soils by subtracting of soil inorganic carbon from total carbon determined by dry combustion method.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.59-65
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• 2004

Interactions of phosphorus and zinc in soils are important to determine the availability of the elements because those elements are closely related in the agricultural environment. The objective of this study was to investigate the interactions of P and Zn using desorption quantity (Q)-intensily(I) isotherms. Physically and chemically different soils, acidic Egan, acidic sandy Egeland, calcareous Glenham, and neutral Maddock, were used. The soils were enriched with different concentrations of P and Zn as $KH_2PO_4$ and $ZnSO_4$ solutions, respectively. Zinc enrichments affected availability of P in the Egan soil, which contained higher amounts of clay, organic matter, and exchangeable Fe than the other soils tested. After Zn enrichments, the pH drastically decreased in Egeland sandy soil, not changed in the calcarious Glenham soil, and slightly decreased in Egan and Maddock soil systems. The values of $Q_{max}$ and $I_0$ of phosphorus decreased with increasing Zn concentrations enriched in all soils, the changes of those values did not influence the P buffering power, |$BP_o$| values, in most soils. The influences of P treatment on Zn availability were varied. The values of Zn buffering capacity, $BC_{Zn}$, were lowest in the Egeland soil that had the lowest soil pH, amounts of clay minerals, organic matter, CEC, and exchangeable Fe, and were highest in the calcareous Glenham soil. The $BC_{Zn}$ values ranged from 202 to 4480. With P application, the changes of $BC_{Zn}$ values were more affected by the changes of soil solution Zn contents (I) than the changes of DTPA extractable Zn contents(Q). The change of Q and I values was found to be dependent upon soil properties, especially, soil pH.