Chlorination of Organic Material in Agricultural Soil

Abstract: Chlorine is an essential building block in the environment and can be found in most places. Chlorine participates in a complex biogeochemical cycle and has been discussed for many years and it is well documented that natural chlorination of organic compound takes place in many parts of the ecosystem. Chlorine can be inorganic (Clin) and organically bound (Clorg). Previous studies have shown that the transformation of Clin to Clorg is connected with the amount of organic matter and the microbial activity in the soil. So far, studies have been focused on forest soil and there is a need for analysing the natural chlorination in other soil types. The aim of this study was to provide chlorination rates in agricultural soil which does not weem to have been done previously. Three common agricultural soils experiencing different agricultural practice and different cropping systems were incubated with Na36Cl at 20o C in a 56 days radiotracer experiment. The results show that a chlorination of 36Clin to 36Clorg in agricultural soil occurred and the Clorg levels increased over time. The chlorination rates ranged from 0,040 to 0,063 μg Cl g dry weight soil-1 d1. This was 10-fold lower than rates previously measured in coniferous forest soil. However, when expressed as μg Cl g dry weight organic carbon-1 d-1, rates in the agricultural soil was only slightly (at the most 2-fold) lower than in coniferous forest. This study contributes with new knowledge of natural chlorination rates in agricultural soil and gives further evidence that the natural chlorination can be connected to the amount of organic matter in the soil.