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cation exchange site and cation charge [technical]
Ok, soil science experts. Here's my question:
Is the number of ions which can be captured by cation binding sites of
clay or organic matter dependent upon the valence charge of the ion?
I think the answer is no because a cation with charge -2 once loosely
bound to a site can still retain an unbalanced negative charge. But if
the surface of this CEC site then gets a negative charge, it could
attract and hold anions!
In the end I suppose its an empirical number which is dependent upon the
types of salts present in solution. The reason I'm asking this is I'm
trying to figure out how many milligrams of nutrients could be adsorbed
by a given weight of clay or kitty litter.
Steve P in rainy Vancouver (where the natural seasons have returned)
>:-P
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