PRESENCE OF IONS IN SOIL

INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I owe a great thanks to many people who have helped and supported me during the course of this project. My deepest thanks to my respected chemistry teacher, Mrs. Sarita Khokhar for guiding and corresponding various mistakes of mine with attention and and care. She has taken pain through the project and make necessary correction as and when needed. My deep senses of gratitude to the Lab assistant Mr. Indar for his continuous support and guidance. I would also thank my school and the principal, Mrs. Manju Rana without whom this project would have been a distant reality. I also extended my heartfelt thanks to my family and friends.

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Aayush Tomar, student of class XII A, Seth Anandram Jaipuria School, Ghaziabad has completed the project tilted Soil Analysis during the academic year 2012-2013 towards partial fulfillment of the credit for the Chemistry Practical Evaluation, under my supervision.

Ms. Sarita Khokhar PGT (Chemistry)

Soil is a natural surface layer that is capable of supporting plants. Soil forms the upper-most layer of the earths crust and is made up of inorganic and organic matter. The world consists of 71% water and 29% land. Of the 29%, 5,8% are dry, cold ice deserts; 8,7% are warm sand and rock deserts and 5,8% are too steep to cultivate. This leaves us with only 8,7% of land with an approximately 1m deep layer of soil to feed, house and sustain all the people of the earth (Harmse, 1987).

SOIL SOLUTIONS
Soil retain water that can dissolve a range of molecule and ions. These solutions exchange gases with the soil atmosphere , contain dissolved sugar, plant nutrients such as nitrate, ammonium, potassium, phosphate, sulphate and calcium, and micronutrientsbsuch as zinc, iron and copper. Some arid soils have sodium solutions that greatly impact plant growth. Soil pH can affect the type and amount of anions and cations that soil solutions contain and that exchange with the soil atmosphere and biological organism.

SANDY SOIL IONS PRESENT1.Sulphate 2.Phosphate 3. Chloride 4. Nitrate

Agriculture: Sandy soils are ideal for crops such as watermelons, peaches, and peanuts, and their excellent drainage characteristic make them suitable for intensive dairy farming. Aquaria: Sand makes a low cost aquarium base material which some believe is better than gravel for home use. Artificial reefs: Geotextile bagged sand can serve as the foundation for new reefs.

 Beach nourishment: Government move sand to beaches where tides, storms or deliberate changes to the shoreline erode the original sand. Brick: Manufacturing plants add sand to a mixture of clay and other materials for manufacturing bricks. Concrete: Sand is often a principal component of this critical construction material. Glass: Sand is the principal component in common glass. Landscaping: Sand makes small hills and slopes(for example, in golf courses) Railroads: Train operators use sand to improve the traction of wheels on the rails. Roads: Sand improves traction(and thus traffic safety) in icy or snowy conditions. Sand castles: Shaping sand into castles or other miniature buildings is a popular beach activity. Sandbags: These protect against floods and gun fire. The inexpensive bags are easy to transport

when empty, and unskilled volunteers can quickly fill them with local sand in emergencies. Sandblasting: Graded sand serves as an abrasive in cleaning, preparing, and polishing. Water filteration: Media filters use sand for filtering water.

Red soil IONS PRESENT1. Phosphate 2. Nitrate 3. Chloride 4. Acetate 5. Carbonate The classification denotes red coloured soils (sometimes called red rendzinas) that develop in or on the karstic landscape of the limestones of the Miocene and earlier periods, as well ascalcretes in regions where the modern Mediterranean climate is predominant. Red Medditerranean soils developed most vigorously from the Miocene to the Late Pleistocene, because those that the periods where the climate fluctuated the most. Terra rossa occurs in areas where heavy rainfall causes carbonation out of the calcium carbonate parent rock and silicates are leached out of the soil to leave residual deposits that are rich in iron

hydroxides, the cause of the red colour. Such areas are usually depression within the limestone, or areas where the vegetation is garrigue.

GARDEN SOIL IONS PRESENT1. Sulphate 2. Phosphate 3. Chloride 4. Nitrate 5. Acetate Garden soil is used for cultivation mainly found in regions of north India. It has a great importance in everyday life as it provides almost all the essential nutrients for the growth of plants. Nitrates are present in more amount as cyanobacteria, a nitrogen fixer, is present in the soil.

CONFIRMATORY TESTS FOR IONS PRESENT IN SOIL Test for Sulphate: 1. Barium Chloride test Take a small amount of soil sample in a test tube and add 2-3 ml of distilled water to it. To this solution, add barium chloride solution.

OBSERVATIONS A white ppt. is formed which is insoluble in dil. HCL.

Equation Involved: Barium Chloride test: Na2SO4 + BaCl2 BaSo4 + 2NaCl

2. Lead Acetate test: Take a small amount of soil sample in a test tube and add 2-3 ml of distilled water to it. To this solution, add lead acetate solution

OBSERVATIONS A white ppt. is formed which is soluble in excess of hot ammonium acetate solution.

Equation involved: Lead acetate test: Na2SO4 + Pb(CH3COO)2 2CH3COONa PbSO4 +

Test For Phosphate 1. Ammonium Molybdate test Take a small amount of soil sample in test tube and add distilled water to it. Now add conc. Nitric acid and boil. Add ammonium molybdate solutionin excess and again boil. OBSERVATIONS A deep yellow colouration is obtained. Equation Involved: K3PO4 + 3(NH4)2MoO4 3K2MoO4 2(NH4)3PO4 +

Test for Chloride: 1. Silver Nitrate test Take a small amount of soil in test tube and add 2-3 ml of distilled water to it. Acidify this solution with dil. HNO3. Boil for some time. Add silver nitrate solution to it. OBSERVATIONS A white ppt. is formed which is soluble in ammonium hydroxide.

Equations Involved:

Test for nitrate: 1. Ring test Take a small amount of soil in test tube and add 2-3 ml of distilled water to it. Add a small quantity of freshly prepared solution of Ferrous Sulphate to the sample. Pour conc. H2SO4 slowly along the sides of the test tube. OBSERVATIONS A dark brown ring is formed at the junction of the two liquids.

Equations Involved:

Test for Acetate: 1.Ester test Take a small amount of soil sample in a test tube. Add conc. H2SO4 and heat. Add ethyl alcohol(1 ml) Shake the contents thoroughly. Pour the contents in a beaker full of water and stir. OBSERVATIONS Pleasant fruity smell of ester. Equations Involved:

Test for Carbonate: 1. Dil. HCL test Take a small amount of soil and add 2-3 ml of distilled water to it. Add dil. HCL. OBSERVATIONS Brisk effervescence and evolution of carbon dioxide which turns lime water milky, confirms the presence of carbonate.

Equations Involved: