HR: 0800h
AN: H11A-0288    [Abstracts]
TI: Influence of Soil Moisture on Microbial Activity in a Primary Acidification of Pyritic Soils
AU: * Ueno, K
EM: uenok@chubu.isc.ac.jp
AF: Research Institute for Biological Functions (RIBF), Chubu University, 1200 Matsumoto-cho, Kasugai, 487-8501 Japan
AU: Adachi, T
EM: adachit@okayama-u.ac.jp
AF: Faculty of Environmental Science and Technology, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-naka, Okayama, 700-8530 Japan
AB: Soil moisture had a grate influence on soil acidification in pyritic soils. The acidification was occurred by chemical and bacterial processes of pyrite oxidation. It was reported that the bacterial oxidation was accelerated by soil moisture at near the condition of plastic limited. We investigated the accelerated soil moisture condition by matric potential and changes of bacterial activity using a soil taken from polder land of the Lake Nakaumi. Six levels of soil moisture conditions were prepared by drying. The samples were incubated at 30oC with keeping these moistures, and populations of Gram-positive and -negative bacteria (GPB and GNB) and Thiobacillus ferrooxidans (total, adsorbed and free forms) were determined. Soil acidification was accelerated at the moisture range from -6.0kPa to -35kPa while drying at 5.4g/h of evaporation rate. Samples drying at 12.0g/h ceased acidifying over -35kPa. On the other hand, a drop of pH value was accelerated at -35kPa when the samples was kept under their moisture conditions. The moisture condition seemed to be suitable for bacterial oxidation. The major bacteria under most of the moisture conditions were GPB, but T. ferrooxidans, one of GNB, was predominated at -35kPa. Under this moisture condition, the growth rate of T. ferrooxidans was highest and the population of GPB decreased during the exponential growth stage of T. ferrooxidans. Acidification of the soil seemed to be depending on proliferation of T. ferrooxidans not on the cell number of T. ferrooxidans. The growth rate of both absorbed and free forms of T. ferrooxidans was highest at -35kPa of all soil moisture conditions. The survival rate of T. ferrooxidans was highest at -3.5kPa and that of the free forms decreased at -35kPa. At -3,000kPa the absorbed forms of T. ferrooxidans had very small population and then decreased. The free forms were not detected. These data indicated that growth habitat of T. ferrooxidans were influenced by soil moisture. The accelerated moisture condition of -35kPa had a uniqueness on the bacterial populations and was suitable for proliferation of T. ferrooxidans. These results showed that high growth rate of T. ferrooxidans had a great influence on high rate of acidification in pyritic soils. The mechanism supposed to be that motility of the bacteria was influenced by shrinkage level of soil matrix and also that the environment was suitable for getting their energy to keep them alive.
DE: 1866 Soil moisture
DE: 1615 Biogeochemical processes (4805)
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting