PROPERTIES OF AN IRONPAN HUMIC PODZOL FROM NEWFOUNDLAND

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Abstract
An ironpan consisting of one or more layers of hard, cemented, black, vitreous material a few millimeters thick, underlain by strong brown, less strongly cemented material, occurred at various depths within the B horizon of a Humic Podzol developed in gravelly till. The results of differential thermogravimetric analysis and various chemical analyses of the ironpan, of ultimate and functional group analysis of the organic matter extracted from the pan material with 0.5N NaOH, and of micromorphological observations, indicated that the pan consisted mainly of an iron-fulvic acid complex that was soluble in 0.2M acid ammonium oxalate. The properties of the other horizons of the soil are shown to be similar, in general, to those of corresponding horizons of other Podzols. Some hypotheses of the genesis of ironpans are discussed in the light of the data presented.