Evaluation of soils for use as liner materials: a soil chemistry approach

• Published in: Journal of environmental quality Vol. 34; no. 3; pp. 951 - 962
• Main Authors: DeSutter, T.M, Pierzynski, G.M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Madison American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, Soil Science Society 01.05.2005; Crop Science Society of America; American Society of Agronomy
• Subjects: adsorption; Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; ammonia; Ammonia - analysis; Ammonia - chemistry; animal waste lagoons; Animal wastes; Animals; Animals, Domestic; Applied sciences; Bentonite; Bentonite - chemistry; Biological and medical sciences; calcium; Cation exchange; cation exchange capacity; Cations; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics; evaluation methods; Exact sciences and technology; excreta; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Manure; mathematical models; Mineralogy; Models, Theoretical; Pollution; pollution control; Pollution, environment geology; potassium; seepage; Soil; Soil adsorption; soil amendments; Soil chemistry; soil liners; Soil mineralogy; Soil testing; soil-lined earthen basins; Soils; Swine; Waste Disposal, Fluid - methods; Waste lagoons; Zeolites; Zeolites - chemistry; Great Plains region; Kansas; Nebraska; Great Plains; Phase composition; Mineralogy; Prediction; Exchange reaction; Zeolite; Coastal lagoon; Vertebrata; Amendment; Mammalia; Cation exchange capacity; Swine; Artiodactyla; Animal waste; Ungulata; Cation exchanger
• ISSN: 0047-2425; 1537-2537
• DOI: 10.2134/jeq2004.0295

Movement of NH4(+) below animal waste lagoons is generally a function of the whole-lagoon seepage rate, soil mineralogy, cations in the lagoon liquor, and selectivity for NH4(+) on the soil-exchange sites. Binary exchange reactions (Ca(2+)-K(+), Ca(2+)-NH4(+), and K(+)-NH4(+)) were conducted on two soils from the Great Plains and with combinations of these soils with bentonite or zeolite added. Binary exchanges were used to predict ternary exchanges (Ca(2+)-K(+)-NH4(+)) following the Rothmund-Kornfeld approach and Gaines-Thomas convention. Potassium and NH4(+) were preferred over Ca(2+), and K(+) was preferred over NH4(+) in all soils and soils with amendments. Generally, the addition of bentonite did not change cation selectivity over the native soils, whereas the addition of zeolite did. The Rothmund-Kornfeld approach worked well for predicting equivalent fractions of cations on the exchanger phase when only ternary-solution phase compositions were known. Actual swine- and cattle-lagoon solution compositions and the Rothmund-Kornfeld approach were used to project that native soils are predicted to retain 53 and 23%, respectively, of the downward-moving NH4(+) on their exchange sites. Additions of bentonite or zeolite to soils under swine lagoons may only slightly improve the equivalent fraction of NH4(+) on the exchange sites. Although additions of bentonite or zeolite may not help increase the NH4(+) selectivity of a liner material, increases in the overall cation exchange capacity (CEC) of a soil will ultimately decrease the amount of soil needed to adsorb downward-moving NH4(+).