Sorption of non-ionic surfactants to soil: the role of soil mineral composition

In this study, the importance of individual soil mineral constituents on non-ionic surfactant sorption is evaluated by employing scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) to observe microchemical surface composition of model soil colloids and relate surface microchemical composition to the sorption behavior of a non-ionic surfactant, Polyethylene Glyco Mono-p-nonylphenyl Ether (A9PE10), on selected model soil colloids. This information is critical to understanding the fate and transport of this class of contaminants in subsurface. Results obtained from this study indicate that a correlation between the atomic ratio of Si:(Al + Fe) on soil mineral surface and A9PE10 sorption capacity exist, where those soil with larger value of Si:(Al + Fe) ratio exhibit higher sorption capacity. This allows us to predict that the non-ionic surfactant sorption capacity for soil decrease with progressively increasing states of soil maturity.