Microwave acid extraction to analyze K and Mg reserves in the clay fraction of soils

Abstract

Extraction of K and Mg with boiling 1 mol L-1 HNO3 in an open system for predicting K and Mg uptake by plants is a method of low reproducibility. The aim of this study was to compare the extraction capacity of different acid methods relative to hydrofluoric acid extraction for K and Mg. A further objective was to develop a chemical extraction method using a closed system (microwave) for nonexchangeable and structural forms of these nutrients in order to replace the traditional method of extraction with boiling HNO3 on a hot plate (open system). The EPA 3051A method can be used to estimate the total content of K in the clay fraction of soils developed from carbonate and phyllite/mica schist rocks. In the clay fraction of soils developed from basalt, recoveries of K by the EPA 3051A (pseudo-total) method were higher than for the EPA 3052 (total hydrofluoric extraction) method. The relative abundance of K and Mg for soils in carbonate rocks, phyllite/mica schist, granite/gneiss, and basalt determined by aqua regia digestion is unreliable. The method using 1 mol L-1 HNO3 in an closed system (microwave) showed potential for replacing the classical method of extraction of nonexchangeable forms of K (boiling 1 mol L-1 HNO3 in an open system-hot plate) and reduced the loss of Si by volatilization.