Assessment of peroxide oxidation for acid sulfate soil analysis. 1. Reduced inorganic sulfur

Nicholas J. Ward, Leigh A. Sullivan, Richard T. Bush and Chuxia Lin

Abstract

The reduced inorganic sulfur fraction of 4 acid sulfate soil (ASS) materials was quantified using a variety of peroxide oxidation procedures. The temperature and duration of the peroxide oxidation were found to markedly affect the peroxide oxidisable sulfur determination. For 3 ASS materials with low total carbon content (i.e. <2.5% C), peroxide oxidisable sulfur underestimated the reduced inorganic sulfur fraction, with the peroxide oxidisable sulfur determinations being as low as 42% of those determined using chromium reducible sulfur technique. The precipitation of jarosite during peroxide oxidation was a major factor contributing to the underestimation of reduced inorganic sulfur in these materials. Apparent losses of sulfur of approximately 25% on average occurred during peroxide oxidation budget accounting; this also contributed towards the observed underestimation of reduced inorganic sulfur. It is most likely that these unaccounted losses are due to atmospheric losses of sulfur. In a peat ASS, one of the peroxide oxidation methods overestimated the reduced inorganic sulfur fraction and was attributed to the release of a large reserve of organic sulfur in this material by the peroxide. This study shows the peroxide oxidation methods examined here are subject to substantial interferences. Consequently these peroxide oxidation methods are unable to reliably provide accurate measurements of the reduced inorganic sulfur fraction in ASS materials.

pyritic sulfur, peroxide oxidisable sulfur, chromium reducible sulfur, jarosite, sulfur budget.

Keywords: pyritic sulfur, peroxide oxidisable sulfur, chromium reducible sulfur, jarosite, sulfur budget.

Australian Journal of Soil Research 40(3) 433 - 442 (2002) doi:10.1071/SR01009