Mineralogy of agricultural soil of selected regions of South Western Karnataka, Peninsular India

Abstract

Agricultural soils of selected regions of Southwestern Karnataka, Peninsular India, were subjected to systematic mineralogical characterization along with the study of soil physical properties. Physical properties such as soil texture and micro porosity were studied using particle size analyses and positron annihilation lifetime analysis (PALS) technique, respectively. The latter was used to analyze micro porosity of agricultural soil. Both major and minor minerals were identified and confirmed by some analytical techniques like thin section study, powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.