Differences in sorption behavior of the herbicide 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetic acid on artificial soils as a function of soil pre-aging

PURPOSE: The sorption behavior of the herbicide 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetic acid (MCPA) to three different artificial soil mixtures was investigated. Artificial soils serve as model systems for improving understanding of sorption phenomena. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The soils consisted of quartz, ferrihydrite, illite, montmorillonite, and charcoal. In a previous study, several selected mixtures had been inoculated with organic matter, and microbial aging (incubation) had been performed for different periods of time (3, 12, and 18 months) before conducting the sorption experiments. The effect of this pre-incubation time on the sorption behavior was determined. Interaction of MCPA with soil surfaces was monitored by aqueous phase sorption experiments, using high-performance liquid chromatography/ultraviolet and in selected cases Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The sorption behavior showed large differences between differently aged soils; Freundlich and linear sorption model fits (with sorption constants K (f), 1/n exponents, and K (d) values, respectively) were given for pH = 3 and the unbuffered pH of ∼7. The largest extent of sorption from diluted solutions was found on the surfaces with a pre-incubation time of 3 months. Sorption increased at acidic pH values. CONCLUSIONS: Regarding the influence of aging of artificial soils, the following conclusions were drawn: young artificial soils exhibit stronger sorption at lower concentrations, with a larger K (f) value than aged soils. A correlation with organic carbon content was not confirmed. Thus, the sorption characteristics of the soils are more influenced by the aging of the organic carbon than by the organic carbon content itself.