Characterization of Serpentine Soils from Eastern and Southern Rhodope Mountains (Bulgaria)

Abstract

This work aims to characterize serpentine soils in Bulgaria and examine the biogeochemistry of pedogenic Ni and its relation to Ni available forms. Soils were collected from serpentine soils of the Eastern and Southern Rhodopes (Bulgaria). The chemical composition of serpentine soils is similar to serpentine soils from the Balkan Peninsula and is characterized by high contents of Ni (919.9–2397.2 mg.kg–1). The soils had a neutral to slightly alkaline reaction (pH 6.4 to 7.6) and a medium to high organic matter content. Of the primary minerals, those of the serpentine group (antigorite and lizardite), the talc group (willemseite), the amphibole group (riebeckite), the feldspar group (albite) and quartz are mainly present in the soil samples. The secondary minerals present in the samples include calcite and dolomite, and also representatives of the clay minerals, clinochlore and montmorillonite. The contents of free iron oxides (Fed), amorphous iron oxides (Feo), well-crystallized iron oxides (Fecr) (Fed-Feo) and activity index (Feo/Fed) showed significant differences (p<0.05) among soils from different locations. In the soils from Dobromirtsi, Parvenets, and Golyamo Kamenyane Ni bound to Fe oxides were evenly distributed between the well-crystallized and amorphous phases. In the soils from Kardzhali, Chernichevo and Dyulitsa more than half of the Ni bound to Fe oxides were bound to or occluded in amorphous Fe oxides, while in the soils from Kazak were bound to well-crystallized Fe oxides. Pedogenesis, weathering intensity, and Fe geochemistry influence Ni availability in serpentine soils.