Acidic iron oxide waste as a conditioner for calcareous soils

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dc.contributor.authorCampbell R.
dc.contributor.authorO'Brien R.D.
dc.contributor.authorFey M.V.
dc.date.accessioned2011-05-15T15:55:06Z
dc.date.available2011-05-15T15:55:06Z
dc.date.issued2002
dc.description.abstractA fine-grained iron oxide (hematite, (α-Fe2O3), containing 1.2% hydrochloric acid by mass, is the main by-product of an acid recovery plant at Saldanha Bay. The alkalinity of calcareous soils in this semi-arid region causes plant deficiencies in many trace elements, including iron. The use of the acidic waste to decrease the pH of two sandy soils (one non-calcareous and the other containing 1.9% CaCO3) was evaluated in a pot trial. No significant differences were observed in the yield of young wheat in either soil treated with 0, 5 or 25 g iron oxide per kg soil. An application rate of 50 g/kg, however, suppressed wheat growth in both soils by about 40%. This was interpreted as being due to soil salinity in both soils (electrical conductivity, ECe, increased to about 10 dS m-1) and to acidification of the non-calcareous soil to pHKCI4.04 (the calcareous soil remained buffered at pH 7).
dc.description.versionArticle
dc.identifier.citationSouth African Journal of Plant and Soil
dc.identifier.citation19
dc.identifier.citation4
dc.identifier.issn2571862
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/9579
dc.subjectacidification
dc.subjectcalcareous soil
dc.subjectiron oxide
dc.subjectwaste
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.subjectTriticum aestivum
dc.titleAcidic iron oxide waste as a conditioner for calcareous soils
dc.typeArticle
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