Ephemeral Fe(II)/Fe(III) layered double hydroxides in hydromorphic soils: A review

Abstract

Ephemeral green rust is formed seasonally in some hydromorphic soils. It consists of Fe(II)/Fe(III) layered double hydroxides with different types of interlayer anions and different oxidation degrees of iron (x). In synthetized stoichiometric green rust, x = 0.25–0.33; in soil fougerite, it may reach 0.50–0.66. The mineral stability is provided by the partial substitution of Mg2+ for Fe2+. The ephemeral properties of the green rust are manifested in the high sensitivity to the varying redox regime in hydromorphic soils. Green rust disappears during oxidation stages, which complicates its diagnostics in soils. For green rust formation, excessively moist mineral soil needs organic matter as a source of energy for the vital activity of iron-reducing bacteria. In a gleyed Cambisol France, where fougerite is formed in the winter, the index of hydrogen partial pressure rH2 is 7.0–8.2, which corresponds to highly reducing conditions; upon the development of oxidation, fougerite is transformed into lepidocrocite. In the mineral siderite horizon of peatbogs in Belarus, where green rust is formed in the summer, rH2 is 11–14, which corresponds to the lower boundary of reducing conditions (rH2 = 10–18); magnetite is formed in these soils in the winter season upon dehydration of the soil mass.