Phosphorus speciation of clay fractions from long-term fertility experiments in Sweden

Phosphorus (P) losses from agricultural soils constitute a main driver for eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. There is limited knowledge about sorption and release processes of P in these soils, especially concerning the effects of fertilization. In this study, P speciation of the clay fractions from six different soils in long-term fertility experiments in Sweden was investigated by P K-edge XANES spectroscopy. As expected, unfertilized soils had lower concentrations of acid-digestible P compared with fertilized soils. Based on best-fit standards that emerged from linear combination fitting (LCF) of XANES spectra, phosphate sorbed on iron (Fe) (hydr)oxides was a dominant P species in clay fractions from unfertilized soils containing more than 35 mmol kg(-1) of oxalate-extractable Fe. In contrast, P sorbed on aluminum (Al) (hydr)oxides predominated in soils with lower concentrations of oxalate-extractable Fe. A greater proportion of organically bound P was fit for soil samples containing >2% organic carbon. The soils included one calcareous soil for which a greater proportion of P was fit as apatite. After long-term fertilization, P had accumulated mainly as P adsorbed to Al (hydr) oxides according to the XANES analysis. Our research shows that P speciation in fertilized agricultural soils depended on the level of P buildup and on the soil properties. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.