Geochemistry | Soil, minor inorganic components

Soil is one of the most important natural resources. The solid matrix of soil consists in an intimate mixture of inorganic (primarily weathering products) and organic (products of biological decomposition) components. Many minor components commonly present in soil are essential to biological life processes but become toxic when present in excess. Due to the very complex matrix soil, as well as the nature and composition of the minor components, soil has a significant impact on the extraction efficiency and the sensitivity of the analytical methods. Thus, the selection of most suitable methods of analysis, including proper sample preparation and digestion techniques, is extremely important concerning the quality of the analytical results. This article presents an overview of the main analytical procedures and techniques available to determine minor components in a soil matrix either by a direct analysis on the solid fraction or in an extract soil solution. Few examples of analysis of soil minor components applications are also addressed.