Modelling the effect of catena position and hydrology on soil chemical weathering

Abstract

The sensitivity of chemical weathering to climatic and erosional forcing is well established at regional scales. However, soil formation is known to vary strongly along catenas where topography, hydrology, and vegetation cause differences in soil properties and, possibly, chemical weathering. This study applies the SoilGen model to evaluate the link between the topographic position and hydrology with the chemical weathering of soil profiles on a north–south catena in southern Spain. We simulated soil formation in seven selected locations over a 20 000-year period and compared it against field measurements. There was good agreement between simulated and measured chemical depletion fraction (CDF; R2=0.47). An important variation in CDF values along the catena was observed that is better explained by the hydrological variables than by the position along the catena alone or by the slope gradient. A positive trend between CDF data and soil moisture and infiltration and a negative trend with water residence time was found. This implies that these hydrological variables are good predictors of the variability in soil properties. The model sensitivity was evaluated with a large precipitation gradient (200–1200 mm yr−1). The model results show an increase in the chemical weathering of the profiles up to a mean annual precipitation value of 800 mm yr−1, after which it drops again. A marked depth gradient was obtained for CDF up to 800 mm yr−1, and a uniform depth distribution was obtained with precipitation above this threshold. This threshold reflects a change in behaviour, where the higher soil moisture and infiltration lead to shorter water transit times and decreased weathering. Interestingly, this corroborates similar findings on the relation of other soil properties to precipitation and should be explored in further research.