فهرست مطالب محمدهادی فرپور

Mineralogical composition, soil morphological properties, and magnetic susceptibility were affected along soil evolution in soils. That is why micromorphology helps in performing soil classification and evolution studies, as well as making soil management practices much more efficient. Clay mineralogy is a useful tool that helps in better understanding soil forming factors and processes. Soil magnetic properties are complex reflections of chemical, geological, and biological soil characteristics. Thus, knowledge about factors affecting magnetic susceptibility can help in better understanding and interpreting the results obtained in an area. Assessment of soil magnetic behavior might be used in pedology, soil mapping, investigation of soil process variations, parent material composition, sedimentary processes, soil drainage conditions, soil pollution, and separation and identification of soil unit boundaries. The present study was performed to investigate the effects of magnetic susceptibility, clay mineralogy, and micromorphology on soil characteristics, genesis, and evolution.

Seven representative pedons were selected in sedimentary and igneous sections in uncultivated land use and physiographic units: hill, piedmont plain, alluvial plain, and lowland. Physicochemical properties measurements were performed on the collected samples from representative pedons using standard methods. The pedogenic (Fed) and amorphous (Feo) iron concentrations of the extracts were determined using a Vario Atomic Absorption Spectroscope (AAS) instrument. Undisturbed soil samples were selected for micromorphology studies and thin section preparation. Additionally, three soil samples were used for X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses after carbonates, organic matter, and Fe were removed using Jackson (1965) and Kittrik and Hope (1963) procedures. Finally, the mass-specific magnetic susceptibility of soil samples was determined using a Bartington MS2 meter equipped with the MS2B Dual Frequency sensor, capable of taking measurements at both low (χlf at 0.46 kHz) and high (χhf at 4.6 kHz) frequencies.

Salinization, leaching, and illuviation processes of gypsum and carbonates were observed in the studied pedons. The soils were classified as Aridisols (Soil Taxonomy system) and Solonchacks, Solonetz, Gypsisols, and Calcisols RSGs (WRB system) due to the presence of calcic, gypsic, salic, argillic, and natric diagnostic horizons. The presence of gypsum, carbonates, salt, clay accumulation, and argillic horizon reduces χlf values. The calcite coating located on the clay coating could probably be attributed to the presence of a climate with more available humidity in the past. The range of soil magnetic susceptibility was from 4.3×10-8 to 1264×10-8 m3kg-1. Gypsum infillings, different forms of gypsum, clay accumulation and coatings, and weathered calcite crystals were among the dominant micromorphological features observed in the studied pedons. Montmorillonite, chlorite, illite, kaolinite, quartz, and vermiculite minerals were observed in the studied pedons. Chlorite and illite minerals were dominant in the clay fraction of the studied soils, whereas a portion of these minerals was probably converted to vermiculite. Discontinuities observed in pedon 2 could be accounted for as proof of more available humidity in the past compared to the present time periods. Moisture has caused the removal of potassium and transformation of illite and chlorite to vermiculite. The dominance of illite and chlorite can be proof of initial weathering and evolution in the other studied pedons.

The χlf variations was related to depth trend and physicochemical properties. The χlf values showed a noticeable negative correlation with argillic horizon, gypsum content, carbonate calcium, and salinity. It seems that most of the clay minerals originated from the parent material in the present study, and pedogenic source has rarely taken place. Besides, the χlf and Fe contents were directly correlated. In general, the results indicated young soils with primary development stages in the area under study. Pedon 2 with buried polygenetic soils is an exception.

One of the main priorities of the agriculture section is the proper use of water and soil resources. Limitation of the cultivated lands, the increasing population and human need for natural resources have led to the use of soil so that in addition to achieving maximum crop, this source is protected for the future. In this regard, it seems that land suitability studies are necessary. There are several methods for assessing land suitability, among which Sys et al. (1991) method is most widely used due to the use of simple and classic models. In many land suitability studies, the uncorrected land index has been used. This has led to many differences in the results of different approaches of land suitability evaluation. The present study was conducted for assessing of accuracy and validity of the corrected indices of land suitability based on the determined relations by Sys et al. (1991) and Bagheri Bodaghabadi (2021).

In this research, field studies were conducted, then several profiles were drilled and described in Khanouk-Zarand, Bam and Rabor districts in Kerman province. Land suitability classes were determined by the four methods including 1-simple limitation, 2- number and intensity of limitations, 3- Khidir.

For better management of gypsiferous soils, it is essential to have knowledge about distribution and its various characteristics. The objectives of the present research included soil genesis studies, classification, micromorphology and clay mineralogy of gypsiferous soils in Jiroft and Anbarabad regions, located in the south of Kerman Province. For this purpose, seven representative pedons were selected, described and sampled. Routine physicochemical, micromorphological and clay mineralogy analysis were performed on the soil samples. Finally, the soils were classified according to two systems: Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015). The origin of gypsum in the soils of the studied area was gypsum marl formations at altitudes. Soils of the region were classified using Soil Taxonomy system in two suborders of gypsids and salids, and classified according to the WRB in three soil reference groups of Gypsisol, Solonchak and Slonetz. Coating and lenticular gypsum crystals and clay coating were observed in the thin sections of the studied soils. Lenticular gypsum crystals were observed in fine-textured soils. The clay coatings observed in the natric and argillic horizons were due to the role of sodium dispersion and paleoclimate, respectively. Illite, chlorite, smectite, kaolinite, sepiolite and palygorskite clay minerals were found in the soils of the regions. The presence of gypsum in the soil and evaporitic formations in the area caused the formation of palygorskite and sepiolite minerals in the soil. An inverse relationship was found between the amount of palygorskite and sepiolite with the amount of smectite, so that due to more weathering in the more humid paleoclimate and with reducing the amount of gypsum, the amount of smectite increased and that of palygorskite and sepiolite minerals decreased.

The present research performed to investigate soil evolution in soils developed on sedimentary and igneous parent materials, northern Kerman. Four representative pedons were selected. Physicochemical properties and Micromorphological features investigated in soil samples. The principal oxides content measured using ICP-OES. Color, clay accumulation, Fe content, and geochemical indices were used to assess soil development in the studied pedons. Studied profiles classified in Aridisols order and Calcite, Gypsic and Argillic horizons were dominant. Mean of pedogenic, free, crystalline, and active Fe contents were determined as 9.4, 0.5, 8.8 g/kg and 0.06, respectively. The values of clay and Fe accumulation indices were obtained 17 (in pedon 3) to 76.5 (in pedon 2) and 24344 (in pedon 2) to 2788 (in pedon 3), respectively. The results showed the correlation between Fe contents and color indices at the 99% level. The mean weight of principal oxides noticeably increased in pedons 1 and 3 compared to other studied pedons. All of geochemical indices, except WIP, showed higher weathering in pedons 1 and 3.The results of color, Fe oxides and clay accumulation and CIW, CIA, PWI, V, PIA, STI and R geochemistry indices demonstrated higher evolution of pedon 3 compared to other studied soils. No significant difference in development rate reated to parent materials change was found. Likely, various evolution of studied pedons was due to intractions among geochemical indices and soil-forming factors and processes.

Climate and topography are two important soil-forming factors that affect the genesis, evolution, and classification of soils. Topography may influence soil evolution through attributes such as the direction, shape, and percentage of the slope, the amount of precipitation, penetration, and runoff, the rate of erosion, as well as the difference in the drainage conditions. On the other hand, organic carbon, the amount and type of clay, soil color, calcium carbonate, base saturation, leaching depth, and solubility of salts in the soil are closely related to the climate. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the effect of climate and topography on changing physicochemical, mineralogical, and micromorphological properties of soil.

This research focused on two regions including, Sardooeyeh and Bam. The Sardooeyeh region, with the soil moisture-temperature regime of xeric-mesic, is about 3500m above sea level. However, the mean elevation in the Bam region, with the aridic-thermic regime, is 900m. Eight representative pedons on the extrusive igneous parent material with an intermediate composition were selected, sampled, and described. Physicochemical, mineralogical, and micromorphological analyses performed on the soil samples, and the soils were classified using Soil Taxonomy and World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB). Soil pH, particle size distribution, electrical conductivity, equivalent calcium carbonate, cation exchangeable capacity, and gypsum were measured, then eight samples were selected for clay mineralogy investigations. A Bruker Dh8 Advance X-ray diffractometer at 30 mA and 40 kW was used to analyze the samples. Scanning electron microscopy was performed. The undisturbed soil samples from horizons were selected for micromorphological observations.

The results revealed the increase in the clay percentage, cation-exchange capacity, organic carbon, and equivalent calcium carbonate in the elevations with the xeric regime. On the other hand, an increase in the amount of electrical conductivity and gypsum percentage in the aridic regime was determined. Thus, changes in soil properties caused different soils, including a range of Mollisols and Alfisols (xeric regime) to Aridisols (aridic regime) in the Soil Taxonomy and the Chernozems, Luvisols, and Calcisols (xeric regime) to Solonchaks, Gypsisols and Cambisols (aridic regime) in the WRB system to be classified. One of the strengths of the WRB system compared to the Soil Taxonomy is the classification of buried soils and the use of the "Raptic" qualifier to indicate the lithologic discontinuity within the pedon. The results of clay mineralogy elucidate the presence of illite, palygorskite, chlorite, smectite, kaolinite, vermiculite, smectite-vermiculite interstratified minerals, and quartz. In the xeric regime, the illite mineral decreased, and vermiculite and smectite increased. However, the amount of illite increased in the aridic climate. Furthermore, the simultaneous presence of palygorskite and smectite-vermiculite interstratified minerals can be the result of the presence of polygenetic soils in this region. Calcite infilling, nodule, and calcite internal hypo-coating, with clay coatings, clay bridges, and link clay capping were among the dominant micromorphological pedofeatures observed in the xeric moisture. On the other hand, the simultaneous presence of calcite and clay coatings and infillings together with gypsum infillings and the interlocked gypsum plates prove the role of paleoclimate in soil formation.

Results of this study showed that the current climate, the paleoclimate prevailing in the region, and topography have key roles on the intensity of weathering, the amount of clay minerals, and the type of pedofeatures in the region. Besides, due to the lack of carbonate in the parent material, it seems that the increase of weathering in the xeric regime part of the area significantly influenced on the alteration of plagioclase mineral which in turn, increased secondary calcium carbonate.

Rheological characteristics of soils (including their deformation and flow behaviors when subjected to external stress) can provide important information on microstructural and microaggregate stability. One of the newest methods of assessing the stability of aggregates is the use of rheometric discussions in this regard. In other words, rheometry can be used to evaluate the elastic behavior of soil versus its plastic behavior in a range of aggregate deformation and thus a more quantitative interpretation of aggregate formation or stability against stress. In the last decade, Amplitude sweep test (AST) has been used to evaluate the stability of soil microstructure and its elastic behaviors. The present study was designed to determine the aggregate stability and viscoelastic behavior of the soil using the rheometric method. In the present study, physical, chemical, clay mineralogical properties and classification of dominant soil orders in Chaharmahal-va-Bakhtiari Province were studied and compared in order to determine the stability of aggregates and viscoelastic behavior of soils using the rheometric method.

Five different soil orders were described and sampled in Shahrekord, Farsan, and Koohrang cities. After air-drying and sieving of soil samples taken from the genetic horizons, the physical and chemical properties were measured using standard methods. Besides, the type of clay minerals was determined by the X-ray diffraction method. AST was used to quantify the initial rheological parameter values, including the storage (G') and loss moduli (G"), deformation limit (γL: when the material begins to irreversibly deform), deformation at flow point (γf: when the material becomes viscous), loss factor (tan δ = G''/ G') and integral z (which summarizes the overall elasticity of the material) in order to study microstructural stability and microaggregates of the five soil orders. Finally, the correlation diagram was plotted among soil properties and rheological parameters using R software. Besides, the soil was classified based on the American Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015).

The studied pedons classified based on the American Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015) in five different soil orders and four reference soil groups, including Entisol (Cryosol in WRB), Vertisol, Mollisol (Kastanozem in WRB), Alfisol, and Inceptisol (Calcisol in WRB). Semi-quantitative analysis of clay minerals showed that the soils have different clay minerals assemblage including kaolinite, vermiculite, smectite, illite, chlorite, and quartz. The results of the AST indicated that the deformation limit was significantly higher in subsoil horizons than topsoil horizons and was also higher in the clayey soils compared to sandy soils. The soils with “vertic soil properties” showed the high range of linear viscoelastic region (LVE) that attributed to the samples with high elasticity behavior. Soils with higher clay contents and further evolution showed higher rheological parameters, implying that these soils had more rigid microstructures incomparable with other soil orders which in turn, indicated the higher microstructural and microaggregate stability. In contrast, the horizon, which had high sand content and little soil development, had the lowest values for all properties, thus indicating a lack of micro-aggregate stability. Pearson correlation coefficient analyses revealed that integral z was influenced by soil physicochemical properties, and was higher in soils with the clay fraction dominated by expansive clay minerals and higher cation exchange capacity.

Altogether, the rheological parameters indicated that more developed soils had greater microstructural stability than their less-developed counterparts. As a result, rheological measurements may be useful for identifying the major factors that affect soil aggregation. In addition, these parameters can be used as indicators to evaluate the relative amount of soil evolution in future studies.

Introduction Landscape represents a large portion of land/terrain that is either formed by a repetition of similar or dissimilar relief/molding types or an association of dissimilar relief/molding types (e.g., valley, piedmont, mountain, etc.). It is usually affected by a set of natural (e.g., climate, organisms, parent material, topography, time, erosion, sedimentation, etc.) and/or artificial (e.g., artifacts) factors. Soil is one of the most important components of landscape that is affected by various factors such as water and wind. Aeolian or alluvial sediments (from seasonal rivers) in arid areas cause the formation of different landforms and change the landscapes in these areas. Therefore, the study of geoforms in arid regions can lead to a better understanding of geomorphological processes and soil change in these areas. There are various methods, including soil micromorphology and clay mineralogy, to understand the alteration of landscapes and the soils change on them. The aim of this study was to investigate the physical and chemical properties, clay mineralogy and micromorphology of soils in various geomorphic units of Davaran Region, Rafsanjan. Materials and Methods Seven dominant geomorphic units (geoforms) of the region, including pediment, margin of fan and cultivated clay flat, alluvial fan, desert pavement, margin of pediment and sand sheet, active drainage, margin of fan and uncultivated clay flat were selected using Google Earth images and field studies. Nineteen pedons were excavated and described in the geomorphic units. After selecting a representative pedon in each of the geoforms, their genetic horizons were sampled. Besides, in order to conduct soil micromorphology studies, undisterbed and oriented samples were collected from selected horizons. After transferring the samples to the laboratory, their physical and chemical properties were measured using standard methods. In addition, clay mineralogy studies were performed by X-ray diffraction method and micromorphological studies were done using a petrographic microscope. Finally, soil classification was performed based on both Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015) systems. Results and Discussion Results showed that gypsification and calcification are the dominant soil forming processes in the studied region, which have led to the formation of Gypsic and Calcic horizons. This has placed the soils in the Gypsids and Calcids suborders based on the Soil Taxonomy system and the Gypsisols and Calcisols reference soil groups according to WRB system. The representative pedon in the margin of fan and cultivated clay flat (pedon 2) geoform lacks a salic horizon based on the Soil Taxonomy; while it is in the Solonchak reference soil group of the WRB. Also, the presence of argillic horizon in the representative pedon of the margin of fan and uncultivated clay flat geoform (pedon 7) indicates presence of a more humid paleoclimate in the history of the region. The results of clay mineralogy showed that the predominant minerals in the region include chlorite, illite, kaolinite, and smectite. The illite, chlorite, and kaolinite are inherited from papent materials of the soils, and the smectite has a transformation origin (from palygorskite and illite). Addition of this mineral by aeolian or alluvial sediments could not also be neglected. The micromorphological results indicated that the soil pores were mainly chamber. The presence of carbonates and gypsum in the studied soils has caused that the b-fabric in the most horizons to be Calcitic Gypsic Crystallitic. Gypsum was observed in the form of vermicular, lenticular, interlocked gypsum plates and subhedral shapes. Other pedofeatures in the studied soils include calcite nodule and limestone. Conclusion The simultaneous presence of aeolian and alluvial sediments in the different geoforms of Davaran region has caused the formation of stratified soils. Existence of dry climate and lack of significant vegetation in the region from one hand, and the addition of different sedimentary layers at different times (which causes soil rejuvination) on the other hand, has caused that the soils of the region, in general, not to be highly developed. As a result, few differences were observed among soils in different geoforms. Comparing the results of two soil classification systems for the studied soils showed that in general there is a relatively good correlation between them. Totally, the role of climate and parent material in alteration of the studied soils is evident; so that the physical and chemical properties, clay mineralogy and micromorphology of soils in different geoforms have been affected.

Soil spectroscopy has overcome many limitations of conventional soil analysis methods due to its rapid, accurate, cost-effective, and non-destructive nature. This study was aimed to investigate the capability of soil spectral data in estimating some key soil properties and comparing different spectral preprocessing methods in determining the performance of the partial least squares regression (PLSR) model. For this purpose, 100 soil surface samples were collected from the study area which was located between Neyriz and Estahban regions in the east of Fars Province. The samples were analyzed for organic carbon (OC), electrical conductivity (EC), calcium carbonate equivalent (CaCO3) and gypsum using standard laboratory methods. Then, the spectral reflectance of the soil samples was recorded in the range of 350-2500 nm and various spectral pre-processing methods were applied to the data. Afterwards, the soil properties were estimated using PLSR. The results indicated the desirable capability of PLSR method in estimating the amount of gypsum (RPD >2, R2 = 0.81, RMSE = 3.87) and its acceptable ability for OC, EC and CaCO3 (2< RPD < 1.4). Also, the best modeling systems for OC, gypsum and EC were obtained as the first derivative with Savitzky-Golay smoothing method (FD-SG), the standard normal variate method (SNV), and the second derivative with SG smoothing method (SD-SG), respectively. Besides, non-preprocessing data of soil CaCO3 provided better estimations than various pre-processing methods. Overall, the results revealed that the visible spectrum range provided the best performance for estimating of OC and EC, and the NIR range for CaCO3 and gypsum.

Playa, as an important geomorphic position in arid areas, covers about 1% of the continents and has attracted attention of soil scientists and geomorphologists. Soil genetic processes related to landforms and geomorphic processes are of great importance. Micromorphology is among necessary techniques in soil studies which has been used by several researchers. Micromorphological features together with other soil characteristics provide invaluable data for reconstructing soil genetic processes. Moreover, classification and identifying characteristics of soils are pre-requisites for the optimum use and management of soil resources. Soil Taxonomy and World Reference Base (WRB) is among the most extensively used classification systems worldwide. Since no data about soils of the Jazmoorian Playa is available, the present research was performed with the following

1) studying physical, chemical, and micromorphological properties of soils in the Jazmoorian Playa related to different geomorphic surfaces, and 2) classifying soils of the region by Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015) systems.

The Jazmoorian playa is located in Kerman and Sistan Baloochestan provinces. The Jazmoorian Playa is a continental depression of late Pliocene. The playa is about 360 m above sea level with about 65 km length and 45 km width located between 58 ˚ to 60 ˚ longitudes and 27 ˚ to 28 ˚ latitudes. The area extends to the igneous Bazman Mountains to the northeast, the igneous Jebalbarez Mountains (granodiorite, andesite, granite) to the north and northwest, the Beshagard Ophiolite Mountains of Cretaceous and Paleocene to the south, and the colored Mélanges to the Oman Sea. Soil moisture and temperature regimes of the area were aridic (and aquic in limited areas) and hyper thermic, respectively. Wet zone, fan delta, clay flat, puffy ground clay flat, sodic clay flat, and salt crust were among the geomorphic surfaces investigated in the playa. In order to study the maximum soil variations in the area, eight representative pedons were described and sampled. Collected soil samples were air dried, grounded, and passed through a 2 mm sieve, and routine physical and chemical soil properties were then analyzed. Undisturbed soil samples were used for micromorphological observations. The soils were classified according to Soil Taxonomy (33) and WRB (11) systems.

Results showed that EC contents of the saturated extracts ranged from 0.5 (fan delta) to 222.2 (salt crust) dS/m. The soils of the playa in Kerman Province affected by the Halilrood River had less salinity compared to the soils on playa surfaces in Sistan Baloochestan Province under influence of the Bampoor River. In addition, salt crust was only formed in parts of the playa located in Sistan Baloochestan Province. Clay coating and lenticular gypsum crystals were among the micromorphological features observed in the Jazmoorian Playa’s soils. The clay coating was formed due to high Na content. However, lenticular gypsum was formed due to small volume pore spaces as well as high salinity of the area. High soluble salts (Table 3) caused a salt coating around pore spaces to be formed due to evaporation of saline water table. WRB system could better classify soils into Solonchak and Solonetz RSGs compared to Soil Taxonomy system which classifies all soils as the Salids sub order. Natric Aquisalids, Typic Natrisalids, Natric Haplosalids, and Puffic Haplosalids sub groups and Natrisalids great group are recommended to be added to Soil Taxonomy system for more harmonization between the two classification systems. Furthermore, the definition of salic horizon in WRB system (EC of at least 15 dS/m and the EC multiplied by thickness of at least 450) is recommended to be included in Soil Taxonomy, because of limitations induced by salts and for a better correlation of the two systems.

Results of physicochemical properties clearly showed that electrical conductivity of soil saturated extracts was in the range of 0.5 to 222.2 dS/m. The part of the playa located in Sistan Baloochestan Province is more saline than the part in Kerman Province. More salinity of playa in Sistan Baloochestan Province was attributed to the Bampoor River which passes through evaporative formations located in east and southeast of the area. Micromorphological observations showed clay coatings and lenticular gypsum crystals as pedogenic features. The soils of the area were classified as Aridisols and Entisols (according to Soil Taxonomy system) and Solonetz, Solonchaks, Fluvisols, and Regosols Reference Soil Groups based on WRB classification system. Moreover, WRB system was capable of separating saline from saline-sodic soils, however, Soil Taxonomy classifies both soils as Salids suborder. Therefore, WRB system is better suited for classification of the soils of our study area as compared with Soil Taxonomy.

Soil classification is a process of showing basic differences among soil classes (5). Different soil classification systems are created for soil classification, but Soil Taxonomy and World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB) are among the most favoured systems in the world including Iran. This system (WRB) is accepted by soil scientists in the world and Soil Taxonomy has also been used in several countries (7). Each of the two mentioned systems has its own strong and/or weak points to show soil characteristics. However, comparing Soil Taxonomy and WRB for calcareous and gypsiferous soils of central Iran, Sarmast et al. (16) reported that according to specifiers used in WRB, this system could be more efficient than Soil Taxonomy. Various environmental conditions and its fluctuations in Kerman Province caused different soils to be formed in the province. Use of soil moisture and temperature regimes by Soil Taxonomy which is totally neglected by WRB system may emphasize that Soil Taxonomy could provide better results for these soils. That is why the present research was performed to compare Soil Taxonomy and WRB systems in the area of the present research with different climates and to show the efficiency of the two systems to describe selected soil characteristics in Kerman Province.

According to climatic variations, four study sites were selected in Kerman Province. Sites 1 (elevation of < 2000 m asl) and 2 (elevation of >2000 m asl) in Baft and Rabor areas were located in the south west of the province. Moreover, sites 3 (around Jiroft and Anbarabad) and 4 (around Roodbar-e-Jonoob and Ghaleganj) were located at the center and south of the province, respectively (Fig. 1). Table 1 shows the soil moisture and temperature regimes of the areas under study (3). Twenty-five pedons on different geomorphic surfaces were described and one representative pedon on each geomorphic surface (total of 11 representative pedons) were selected (Fig 1). Soil description and sampling performed (18) and the collected samples transferred to the laboratory. It is to be noticed that soil moisture regime in site 3 has changed from ustic to aridic during normal years defined in Soil Taxonomy. Ustic/ hypertermic soil moisture/temperature regimes were reported for soils of Jiroft and Anbarabad according to the soil moisture and temperature map of soils of Iran (3). However, according to the latest climatic data (30 years' data and the concept of normal years as defind in Soil Taxonomy, 2014) used in the NSM Software, the soil moisture regime was estimated as weak aridic.

Histic, mollic, argillic, natric, calcic, anhydritic, and cambic horizons were investigated after field work and laboratory analyses. Results of the study show that addition of new Calcixeralfs, Gypsiustalfs, and Gypsicalcids great groups together with newly added Calcic Natrargids, Calcic Natrustalfs, Gypsic Calciustalfs, Typic Petrogypsids, Anhydritic Haplogypsids, and Angydritic Petrogypsids subgroups to the Soil Taxonomy system from one hand, and addition of anhydrite and hypercalcic qualifiers to WRB from the other hand, cause a higher correlation between the two systems. Besides, climatic fluctuations of the recent years in Jiroft and Anbarabad areas caused a change in the soil moisture regime according to normal years defined in Soil Taxonomy. That is why soil name was changed in Soil Taxonomy system. However, WRB system shows no variation because this system is not related to climatic data. Since anhydritic horizon was added to Soil Taxonomy (2014) system, addition of this horizon is recommended to WRB for better correlation of the two systems as was also suggested by Sarmast et al. (16). Meanwhile, soil names in the WRB system provide more information about characteristics of young soil (including yermic qualifier to show desert pavement) compared to Soil Taxonomy.

Conclusion:

 Soil classifications showed that WRB system could describe soil characteristics in the area more efficiently compared to Soil Taxonomy. Climate change caused a variation in soil moisture regime of Jiroft and Anbarabad areas according to normal years of Soil Taxonomy system, which in turn changed soil nomenclature in this system. WRB system is not related to climate that is why soil names were not changed in the above mentioned areas. Besides, WRB system is more efficient to classify gypsiferous soils because gypsum content which is an important factor for management of gypsiferous soils is better focused by WRB. However, lack of anhydritic horizon in the WRB system is a weak point, that is why addition of this horizon was suggested by the authors. It is recommended that soil moisture/temperature regimes of study sites be calculated by softwares using climatic data because the climatic variations of the recent years might have changed the soil moisture/temperature regimes reported in the map of 1998 due to the definition of normal years defind in Soil Taxonomy.

Soil carbon (C) sequestration is recognized as a potentially significant option to off-set the elevation of global atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations. Soils are the main sink/source of carbon and also, an important component of the global C cycle. Total soil carbon (C) comprises of the soil organic C (SOC) and the soil inorganic C (SIC) components. The soil inorganic C (SIC) stock mainly consists of carbonates and bicarbonates. Processes governing the dynamics of the soil carbon stock differ among ecoregions and strongly interact with soil properties. Understanding the distribution of organic and inorganic carbon stocks in soil profiles is essential for assessing carbon storage at the regional and global scale. Although global estimates provide a general view of carbon stock levels, accurate local estimates and factors affecting soil carbon dynamics are very important. As a result, there is an essential requirement for accurately estimating the distribution of carbon reserves and their differences with regard to soil properties. The study area is located in the Sardooeyeh region, South of Kerman, under semiarid conditions. A total of 5 soil profiles were excavated. Percentage of coarse fragments (> 2 mm) using a 2 mm sieve, total organic C by the K2Cr2O7-H2SO4 oxidation method of Walkley-Black, soil inorganic carbon using the Gravimetric carbonate meter method were determined. Bulk density was measured by drying core samples in an oven overnight and dividing the weight of dry soil by the volume of the core occupied by the soil after correction for coarse fragments. Organic carbon in the surface horizons of all profiles is maximum due to vegetation and decreases with increasing soil depth. As the altitude increased, the amount of organic carbon increased in the surface horizons. Lower temperature and higher humidity at higher altitudes lead to the lower organic matter decomposition and consequently higher organic carbon content of the soil. Although the upper soil layers had the maximum soil organic C content, the maximum soil inorganic C content was observed in the sub-surface layers. The soil organic carbon storage was between 5.52 to 9.48 kg m-2 and the storage of soil inorganic carbon in profiles was between 14.41 and 91.34 kg m-2. The total soil carbon storage in the profiles varied between 19.92 to 100.83 kg m-2 and the average was 42.66 kg m-2. The average of soil organic carbon storage in 0-25, 25-60, 60-120 cm depths were 2.6, 1.97 and 1.26 kg m-2, respectively. The amount of soil inorganic carbon storage in 0 -25, 25-60 and 60-120 cm depths were equal to 2.7, 10.40 and 8.26 kg m-2, respectively. Therefore, it seems that more than 50% of the total soil inorganic carbon storage is stored at a depth of 25-60 cm from the soil surface. The portion of inorganic carbon storage of total soil carbon was 77.5%, and about 89% of it was stored in sub-surface horizons (below 25 cm). The portion of organic carbon storage of total soil carbon was 22.4%. It seems that an increase in the partial pressure of CO2 in soils leads to some dissolution of the pedogenic carbonate in the top soil. Dissolved pedogenic carbonate transfers to the deep soil and then re-crystallizes under relatively dry conditions and low CO2. The results showed that soil organic carbon storage was mostly higher in surface horizons, and soil inorganic carbon storage was higher in sub-surface horizons. On average, the ratio of soil inorganic carbon storage to soil organic carbon storage was 4.27. The high percentage of soil inorganic carbon storage in total soil carbon, shows that inorganic carbon plays a very important role in semi-arid regions. Almost 89% of the soil inorganic carbon content and about 80% of the total soil carbon were accumulated in the sub-surface horizon of soil (below 25 cm), indicating the importance of sub-surface soil for storing carbon in semi-arid regions.

Soil digital mapping represents a set of mathematical computations to predict the distribution of soil classes in the landscape. . The digital identification of soils as a tool for creating soil spatial data provides ways to address the growing need for high-resolution soil maps. The use of digital soil mapping technique has been expanded considerably; therefore, new methods of mapping and preparing digital maps have been developed by researchers to eliminate the limitations of traditional methods. This approach relies on statistical relationships between measured soil observations and environmental covariates at the sampling locations. Digital soil data is increasing based on new processing tools and various digital data. The present study was conducted with the purpose of digital soil mapping in Kouhbanan region of Kerman based on a Multinomial logistic regression model.

The study area is located in southeastern Iran, northwest of Kerman city, in Kouhbanan distinct. This study covers a 2000 ha area. In this study, a Latin hypercube sampling design was applied and the sampling was done according to the difference in landforms (geomorphology map), topography (including digital elevation map) and geology. Finally, the geographic locations of 70 profiles were identified. Soil profiles were described according to U.S. Soil Taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 2014) and finally, the soil samples were taken from their diagnostic horizons. The collected soil samples were transferred to the laboratory, and some physical and chemical analyzes were performed based on routine standard methods. Environmental data include the parameters derived from the digital elevation model, Landsat satellite images (remote sensing indexes), geology map, geomorphic units (geomorphology map) and legacy soil map of the study area. All environmental variables were derived using ENVI and SAGA software. In this research, a multinomial logistic regression model was used to predict soil classes and the modeling was done in R software using nnet package. It is worth noting that leave-one-out cross validation was used for validation. Estimation of predictive accuracy of soil classes was also done using the overall accuracy index and Kappa coefficient.

The results showed that the soils of the study area were mainly classified in the Aridisols and Entisols orders. The modeling results showed that the terrain attributes were recognized as the effective auxiliary variables in the prediction process of soil classes. This confirms topographic importance on soil genesis in the studied area. After that, geomorphology map was an important tool in soil mapping that helps to increase predictive accuracy. Among the soil classes, the prediction of Haplocambids was accompanied with low accuracy, while Haplosalids great groups were predicted with high accuracy. The low estimation accuracy of the great group of Haplocambids is probably due to the low sample size of this class of soil in the study area. A good identification of the relationships between the predictor variables and the target variable depends primarily on the size and distribution of the sample in the layers. There were only two examples of Haplocambids in the area. Therefore, low accuracy is expected because the model has failed to establish a relationship between this class with environmental variables and makes it difficult to identify threshold values for classifying soil classes and, consequently, a poorly trained model. It is also possible that low prediction accuracy is the result of the conceptual model being incomplete, since there is no characteristic feature that can help model training and ultimately prediction. Among the soil great groups, the best predictions were obtained for the great group of Haplosalids, which demonstrates high values of user accuracy and reliability. Accurate prediction of the class of Haplosalids is highly correlated with the spatial distribution of indices such as wetness index and NDVI. Kappa index and purity map were calculated 0.45 and 0.65 for digital soil map derived from multinomial logistic regression. In the predicted map, six major groups of Haplosalids, Haplocambids, Haplocalcids, Haplogypsids, Calcigypsids and Torrifluvents were identified. The great groups of Haplocalcids, Haplosalids, and Calcigypsids cover most of the area and the great groups Haplocambids and Haplogypsids occupy lowest of the area. The great group of Haplosalids is located in the north of the region and in the piedmont plain landform. Haplocalcids great groups were most commonly found in alluvial fan landform, while Calcigypsids are located in pediments, alluvial fans, and piedmont plain landforms. Haplocambids and Haplogypsids great groups are located more in the geomorphic surface of the alluvial fan and the piedmont plain, respectively. The parts of the region with the most variations or diversity of soil classes are exactly where the geomorphological map has the most segmentation. Therefore, the presence of different soil classes in the least-differentiated and most similar regions is resulted to an inefficient conceptual model and poor prediction results.

The results showed that topographic parameters were the most important and powerful variable in modeling, and confirms that topography or relief is the most important soil forming factor in the study area. Predictive results of soil classes in Kuhbanan area of Kerman province showed that geomorphological map in the study area is very useful and necessary and also is effective in understanding and communicating between soil and landscape. Using this map as a qualitative auxiliary variable can explain much of the variability of soils in the study area. Careful field observation, satellite imagery consideration, study and interpretation of data obtained from soil profiles indicate that the study area has been evolved by geological, geomorphological, and hydrological processes that lead to the formation of various landforms including rock outcrops, hills, pediment , alluvial fan and plain. For the multinomial logistic regression model in the study area, terrain attributes have the most influence on the prediction of soil classes and soil properties than the remote sensing indices. The strong relationship between soil data and environmental parameters is one of the factors influencing model accuracy. Logistic regression models will have great potential in predicting soil classes if a complete understanding of the study area and proper selection of auxiliary variables are carried out.

Introduction:

 Increasing demand for an international classification system as a unique communication tool in soil science has caused development of different systems.  Like many other countries, Soil Taxonomy and WRB are the most popular soil classification systems in Iran. Genetic and morphologic soil properties are used for soil classification in both systems. However, correlation of the two systems and efforts to harmonize them have been a major concern among soil scientists. Comparing Soil Taxonomy and WRB in gypsiferous and calcareous soils of central Iran, Sarmast et al. (13) reported that WRB using various qualifiers is more effective than Soil Taxonomy. Since no study on soils of Iranshahr and Dalghan Regions located in Sistan and Baloochestan Province has performed and/or no reported data is available, the present research was performed to: 1) study morphological, physical, and chemical soil properties in the area, 2) classify soils based on Soil Taxonomy (2014) and WRB (2015) systems, 3) compare the two systems for soil description in Iranshahr and Dalghan regions as a part of Sistan and Baloochestan Province, central Iran.

The study area starts from Iranshahr (590 m asl) in the center of the province and extends to Dalghan (390 m asl) in west. Alluvial fan, pediment, playa, and hill were among different landforms identified using field studies, topography maps (1:50000), and Google Earth image observations. To cover the maximum soil variations in the area, 10 representative pedons were selected, described, and sampled.

Calcic, gypsic, anhydritic, argillic, natric, and salic horizons identified after field work and laboratory analysis. Results of the study showed that addition of Yermic Torrifluvent, Yermic Torriorthent, Calcic Gypsiargid, Gypsic Natrsalid, Natric Gypsisalid, Anhydritic Gypsisalid, Anhydritic Calcisalid subgroups to Soil Taxonomy system from one hand, and addition of anhydrite and aquic (for Solonchak reference soil group) qualifiers to WRB system from the other hand, causes a higher correlation and more harmonization between the two classification systems. Meanwhile, the minimum percentage of calcium carbonate equivalent necessary for calcic horizon identification in coarse textured soils including gravel in Soil Taxonomy is also suggested to be added to WRB system. Besides, requirements of salic horizon in WRB system is recommended to be added to Soil Taxonomy. At the same time, soil names in WRB system provide more information and data about soil properties and characteristics in young soils (such as yermic qualifier showing desert pavement) compared to Soil Taxonomy. Soil Taxonomy is not able to properly classify saline soils of arid regions down to subgroup level which is a weak point for this system. That is why newly added Gypsic Natrsalids is suggested for soils with natric, gypsic, and salic horizons in the upper 100 cm of the soil. On the other hand, the requirements of salic horizon in WRB system (the minimum EC content of 15 dS/m and the EC multiplied by the horizon thickness of more and/or equal to 450) are also suggested for Soil Taxonomy.

Results of the study for both saline and sodic soils show more capability of WRB system compared to Soil Taxonomy to classify soils. From soil management point of view, natric horizon causes more negative effects compared to salic horizon because Na disperses the soil particles and destroys soil structure and sodic soils need more practices to be improved compared to saline soils. Results for gypsiferous soils also show more capability of WRB system compared to Soil Taxonomy because gypsum content which is important for gypsiferous soils management is properly concerned in WRB system. However, lack of anhydritic horizon in WRB seems to be a weak point for this classification system. That is why it is suggested to be added to WRB (13). Since Soil Taxonomy does not use independent abbreviations for anhydritic horizon compared to gypsic horizon, the Ba and Baa abbreviations are also suggested for Soil Taxonomy to be added.

One of the best methods for managing coal wastes to prevent their accumulation in nature and reduce environmental pollution is their application as the sorbents of pollutants. The objective of this study was to investigate the capability and behavior of the coal wastes in three forms of pristine powder (cp), nanoparticles (cnp) and FeCl3 modified nanoparticles (mcnp) for phosphorous (P) sorption from aqueous solution. Characterization of the sorbents was carried out using XRD, SEM-EDS and FTIR analyses. Equilibrium sorption experiments were done in batch systems and the effects of pH, initial P concentration and contact time were studied. The results showed that the P sorption process was pH dependent and the maximum P sorption occurred at 2-6 pH ranges. The maximum P removal efficiency of the sorbents obtained in the range of 0-50 mg/L of initial P concentration and it was increased with time and reached equilibrium after 2 hours. The P removal efficiencies of the sorbents were determined to be 3.3, 18 and 78.8 % for cp, cnp and mcnp, respectively. The pseudo-first and pseudo-second order kinetic models and Langmuir isotherm described the P sorption data well. The maximum P sorption capacities were calculated to be 0.37, 3.97 and 30.39 mg/g for cp, cnp and mcnp, respectively. Results revealed that the modified coal wastes have the potential to use as cost-effective and environmental-friendly sorbents.

The availability of the applied phosphorus (P) is controlled by sorption-desorption reactions in soil. Since the sorption-desorption reactions are affected by physical and chemical properties of the soil, the presence of organic matter (OM) and carbonates can also effect on the P sorption capacity in soil. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of OM and carbonates on phosphorus sorption isotherms in some calcareous soils of Kerman province.

Six surface soil composite samples (0-30) were collected from Kerman Province located in southeast of Iran. The soils with a wide range of OM and calcium carbonate were selected for sampling. Samples were air dried and passed through a sieve of 2 mm. Physicochemical properties of the soil samples were determined according to the Soil Survey Laboratory Manual. Thereafter, the soil samples were divided into three parts. One portion was used for treatment with sodium hypochlorite to remove organic matter. The second part was treated with sodium acetate buffer (pH = 5) to remove carbonates. The third was used as a control without any treatment. Batch experiments were carried out to determinthe P-sorption isotherms in soil. The sorption behavior of P was studied by Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. All experiments were conducted in three replications.

The results showed that organic matter and equivalent calcium carbonate, removed from the studied soils with an average efficiency of 86.7% and 84.9%, respectively. Although the isotherms data showed that both Langmuir and Freundlich equations fits to data,Langmuir equation with higher mean of correlation coefficient (R2=0.982) and lower standard error (0.022) showed the best fit to P-sorption data for all soil samples (with and without treatment). Removal of organic matter by sodium hypochlorite increased the phosphorus adsorption capacity in the studied soils. After removal of soil organic matter, an increase in phosphorus adsorption capacity in the studied soils. With respect to control, removing the organic matter increased the adsorption capacity parameters (qmax and kf) about 37 to 104 mg.kg-1 and 11 to 23 L.kg-1, respectively. These results indicate that Fe- and Al-oxides and other available adsorption sites on the mineral surfaces are coated by organic matter and are activated after removal of OM. Removal of carbonates from the soil significantly reduced the P-sorption capacity. qmax and kf were decreased by 17% and 32%, respectively, compared to untreated soils. It is, therefore suggested that available P adsorbing surfaces decreases by removing carbonates from the soil.Constants related with bonding energy increased by 17.03% and decreased by 28.78% by removal of OM and calcium carbonate, respectively. The P maximum buffering capacity is an important indicator for assessing phosphorus stabilization capacity in soil. The greater P buffering capacity, the fewer ability of phosphorus replacement to soil solution. After removal of carbonates, this parameter decreased by an average of 42.5%. The results suggested that carbonates is an important factor in availability of phosphorus in soil. The required phosphorus standard increased by 14.43% by removing OM in the studied soils. However, the removal of carbonates reduced the need of soil for phosphorus by 40.5%.

In this study was investigated the effect of removing organic matter and carbonates on phosphorus sorption isotherms in some calcareous soils of Kerman province. The results of this study showed that P sorption capacity is affected by the amount of carbonates and organic matter. Removal of organic matter from the soil increased the sorption capacity of phosphorus due to Fe- and Al-oxides. Other available adsorption sites on the mineral surface which are coated by the organic matter are active. Carbonates is known as an active site for maintaining phosphorus in the soil and its removal from soils reduces the phosphorus adsorption capacity. Applying/Preserving organic matters to/in soil can increases the efficiency of phosphate fertilizer application and improves plant nutrition. The removal of carbonates from the studied soils reduced their need for phosphorus. Therefore, as well as the addition of organic matter to soil, the removal or reduction of carbonates from agricultural soils is important for improving phosphorus utilization efficiency and plant nutrition management.

Several archaeologists believe that there is a relationship between cultural residuals, human beings, and soil. Soil related factors such as age index, climate change, and paleoclimate are important in archaeology. Soils could be accounted as records of invaluable information. Appropriate compiling of these data cause better understanding of soil and landscape genesis, and human activities in the past. There are two distinguished archeological sites of Daqyanous (Islamic Era) and Konarsandal (before Islamic Era) in Jiroft area. Besides, Konarsandal site is surrounded by old and new Halilrood channels. Since no data about the comparison of soil evolution in the mentioned archeological sites were available, the present research was conducted to compare soil evolution of archaeological sites using soil classification, clay mineralogy, and micromorphology in Jiroft area.

soil samples were collected from three different archaeological sites including new channel of Halilrood (pedon 1), old channel of Halilrood (pedon 2) and, Daqyanous (pedon 3). The samples were air-dried and sieved (2 mm). Routine soil physical and chemical analyses including pH, EC, soil textural class, soluble sodium, calcium, and magnesium, and gypsum and calcite contents were performed. The studied pedons were classified using Soil Taxonomy system according to morphology, laboratorial results, and field observations. The clay minerals were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) method after carbonates, organic matter, and Fe were removed using Jakson (1965) and Kittrik and Hope (1963) procedures. Ten undisturbed samples were selected for micromorphology studies and thin section preparation.

Pedon 1 is affected by Halilrood River sediments, that is why an old soil together with a young soil was formed. Salinity and SAR in the old soil were higher than the upper young soil. A textural discontinuity was found between the old and the young soils. Natric, calcic, and gypsic horizons were found in pedon 1 and caused a Typic Natrargid to be formed in new Halilrood channel. Natric horizon due to high Na cation was formed in pedons 1 and 2. On the other hand, salic, natric, and cambic horizons formed a Typic Haplosalid in pedon 2 (old Halilrood channel). High salinity and SAR in the upper layers caused salic and natric horizons to be formed. Pedon 3 with argillic horizon is an old polygenetic soil. Available humidity in the past caused removal of carbonates from upper layers that followed by clay illuviation and argillic horizon formation. Salinity and SAR in this soil were low and a heavy texture was found in pedon 3. Since pedon 3 showed cambic, argillic, and calcic horizons, it was classified as Arenic Haplargids. Calcium carbonate, gypsum, Fe oxides, and clay coatings were among dominant micromorphological features observed in the studied pedons. Konarsandal archeological site is located in the lowlands of Jiroft plain downward Rabor and Baft elevations. Lenticular gypsum crystals could be attributed to the solution of upward Neogene formations and groundwater close to the surface which evaporates due to capillary. Powdery calcite, Fe-oxides, and clay coating and infilling of gypsum in pore spaces of pedon 1 were observed by micromorphological investigations. Diffused clay coating around pore spaces is explainable by high sodium content and Natric horizon formation. Lenticular, interlocked plates, and infillings of gypsum were observed in pedon 1. However, gypsum with irregular shapes and low content was investigated in pedon 2. This is due to location of this pedon in Halilrood old channel. That is why pedon 2 affected by Halilrood during long periods of time is unstable and shows less evolution compared to pedon 1. Irregular and lenticular forms of gypsum show weak soil development due to low rainfall, high evaporation, and excess salt. High NaCl is reported as a requirement for lenticular gypsum formation. This form of gypsum is supported by high salinity in pedons 1 and 2. High Na and natric horizon formation in pedons 1 and 2 caused dispersion of clay and ceased formation of clay films around pore spaces. Gypsum was not found in pedon 3 during filed and laboratory studies. Besides, gypsum was not observed by micromorphological observations. Clay and calcite coatings and calcite infillings were among the micromorphological features observed in pedon 3. Calcite coating on clay coating in this pedon could be attributed to the climate with more available humidity in the past followed by an arid climate. Carophyte algae fossil was only observed in pedon 3. Kaolinite, illite, chlorite, smectite, and palygorskite clay minerals were determined by X-ray diffraction. Palygorskite is highly related to the parent material and climate. Pedogenic palygorskite formation from transformation of 2:1 clay minerals and/or neoformation is reported by several studies. Due to the impact of paleoclimate with more available humidity, palygorskite was not found in Daqyanous archeological site. It seems that higher humidity in the past did not allow palygorskite formation or transformed it into smectite. Chlorite and illite are originated from parent material. Evidences of pedogenic mica minerals in arid and semi-arid environments were also found which is due to K fixation among smectite layers. Smectite with pedogenic origin is also reported by Sanjari et al. (29) in the study area. Chlorite, illite, and kaolinite clay minerals seem to be originated from parent material in the present study.

Laboratories analyses and micromorphology observations clearly showed weak development in Konarsandal pedons compared to high evolution of soils in Daqyanous archaeological site. The same results were also found for unstable surfaces of pedons 1 and 2 compared to stable surface of pedon 3. The stable surface provided the accumulation of clay and calcite coatings around the cavities and the formation of argillic and calcic horizons indicating high soil development. Results of the study showed polygenetic formation in soils. Soils in old Halilrood channel show high salinity and Na adsorption ratio compared to other two pedons under study.

Soil maps are a common source of information for land suitability studies. Land suitability studies are to compare land characteristics with the needs of land-use types and to select the best land-use productivity types for cultivation. Land evaluation analysis is considered as an interface between land resources and land use planning and management. However, the conventional soil surveys are usually not useful for providing quantitative information about the spatial distribution of soil properties that are used in many environmental studies. Development of the computers and technology lead to develop the digital and quantitative approaches in soil studies. These new techniques rely on the relationships between soil and the environmental variables that explain the soil forming factors or processes and finally predict soil patterns on the landscape. Different types of the machine learning approaches have been applied for digital soil mapping of soil classes. To our knowledge, most of the previous studies applied land suitability evaluation based on the conventional approach. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to assess the performance of digital mapping approaches for the qualitative land suitability evaluation in the Jiroft plain of Kerman province.

An area in the Jiroft plain of Kerman Province, Iran, across 28º14′ and 28º 26′N, and 57º 30′ and 57º 46′E was chosen. The study area is placed on alluvial plain, gravelly alluvial fans, eroded hills. Based on Google Earth image, geomorphology and topography maps and also field survey, 62 pedons were selected and excavated, and soil samples were taken from different soil horizons. Then, soil physicochemical properties were determined. To assess the climate, the climate information obtained from the Jiroft Synoptic Station. The average of soil properties was determined by considering the depth weighted coefficient up to 100 centimeters for potato. Qualitative land suitability evaluation for potato was determined by matching the site conditions (climatic, hydrology, vegetation and soil properties) with studied crop requirement tables presented by Givi (5). Land suitability classes were determined using parametric method. Land suitability classes reflect degree of suitability as S1 (suitable), S2 (moderately suitable), S3 (marginally suitable) and N (unsuitable). For digital approach, multinomial logistic regression (MLR) was used to test the predictive power for mapping the land suitability evaluation. Terrain attributes (elevation, slope, aspect, wetness index and multiresolution valley bottom flatness (MrVBF)), remote sensing indices (normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), perpendicular vegetation index (PVI), and ratio vegetation index (RVI)), geology map, and geomorphology map were used as auxiliary information. Finally, all of the environmental covariates were projected onto the same reference system (WGS 84 UTM 40 N). Training and validating the model was done by leave-one-out cross validation. The accuracy of the predicted soil classes was determined using error matrices and overall accuracy.

The results showed that climatic conditions are suitable (S1) for potato. The most important limiting factors were the gravel content, soil acidity and soil salinity for potato growing in the study area. Land suitability classes S2 to N were determined based on land index in the study area. The modelling results demonstrated overall accuracy 0.47 and 0.25 for class and subclass of land suitability, respectively. It seems that low number of soil samples for training and validating of the model were probably caused to low accuracy as compared to the other researches. In addition, the overall accuracy decreased from class to subclass. The terrain attributes (slope and aspect), remote sensing indices (normalized difference vegetation index) and geomorphology map were the most important auxiliary information to predict the land suitability classes and subclasses. This indicates the importance of geomorphological processes for determining the land suitability class in the study area.

Results suggest that the land form, land position and geomorphology processes affect soil properties and then, land suitability classes. Therefore, variability of land suitability classes is function of variability of soil properties. Digital approaches could help to obtain the information with high resolution, provided that the criteria of suitability are associated with variability of soil properties. Although digital mapping approaches increase our knowledge about the variation of soil properties, integrating the management of the sparse lands with different owners should be considered as the first step for optimum soil and land use management.

Increase of water holding capacity induced by polymers has been developed in arid and semi-arid regions. The effect of polymers on increasing water holding capacity and the effect of selected polymers on some growth characteristics of corn plant under drought stress was carried out in both experimental and greenhouse condition, respectively.

The present research included two complementary parts performed in laboratory and greenhouse. First, the effect of 11 polymer treatments (polymer type and concentration) including Karacoat 1and 3 %, Acrylic 1 and 3 %, Polyvinyl acetate 1 and 3 %, Superab 0.5 and 1 %, Stockosorb 0.5 and 1 % and control without polymer on moisture changes of two soils (loamy sand and sand) during 11 times (0, 12 h, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 20 day) were studied in laboratory and 4 best polymer treatments were selected for greenhouse cultivation. In greenhouse, the effect of polymer treatments (Karacoat 1and 3 %, Stockosorb 0.5 and 1 % and control without polymer) under drought stress (30, 50 and 80 % field capacity) on some growth characteristics of corn plant (leaf number, height, wet and dry weight of stem and wet and dry weight of root) were studied separately in loamy sand and sandy soils.

Results showed that increase of moisture in both treated soils was higher than control and from this point of view, water soluble polymer-Karacoat 3 % (18.5 % compared to loamy sand control and 35.9 % compared to sandy control) and Stockosorb 1 % hydrogel (95.8 % compared to loamy sand control and 3.4 times compared to sandy control) were more powerful. Mean moisture after 20 days for water soluble polymers and Superab hydrogel was higher in loamy sand than sandy soil. But, Stockosorb 1 % hydrogel was more effective in sandy soil (16.1 % increase compared to loamy sand soil). With increasing polymer concentration, the moisture content of polymer treated soil samples increased. To increasing water holding capacity Stockosorb 1% hydrogel in loamy sand (0-12 day) and sandy (0-16 day) soils was more successful than other polymer treatments. Both water holding capacity during the time and final moisture content in sandy soil treated with polymers were more than loamy sand soil. Leaf number, stem height, wet and dry weight of stem and dry weight of root in corn plant were reduced under drought stress. In contrast, height, wet and dry weight of corn stem were better in stockosorb hydrogel 1 % treatment. Wet weight of corn stem in loamy sand soil under drought stress was significantly affected (P < 0.01) by stockosorb hydrogel. Stockosorb 1% hydrogel increased wet weight of stem 59.29, 82.41 percent and 3.82 time in low, medium and severe stress compared to control, respectively.

According to the results karacoat 3 % and stockosorb 1 % are recommended for increasing moisture and water holding capacity of coarse texture soils. Moreover, polymer materials with properties such as useful longevity, high efficiency at low concentrations, and local application in the root zone of trees could provide ideal condition for plant which growth in soils with low water holding capacity. In addition, they are ideal for drought condition that is common in arid and semi-arid regions where rain is low and evaporation is high.

Phosphorus availability in soils is controlled by sorption/desorption reactions. These reactions are also affected by the physical and chemical properties of the soil. In this research, effects of organic carbon, active calcium carbonate and clay on the phosphorus sorption behavior of calcareous soils were studied along Negar-Lalezar and Baft Orzouyeh transects in Kerman Province, Iran. The phosphorus sorption in soil was determined using batch experiment and Langmuir, Freundlich and Van Hay isotherms. The results showed that, based on the coefficient of determination (0.978) and standard error of estimate (0.027), Langmuir model fitted well with experimental data. Maximum sorption of phosphorus (qmax) and maximum buffering capacity of P increased when the active calcium carbonate increased. Results showed that qmax increased from 655 to 1025 mg.kg-1, and the maximum buffering capacity of P increased from 114 to 243 L.kg-1 when calcium carbonate increased from 7.68% to 18.25%. However, qmax decreased from 701 to 535 mg.kg-1 and maximum buffering capacity of P decreased from 90 to 44 L.kg-1 with increasing organic carbon in the studied soils (from1.74% to 7.8%). Using the equation of Van Hay, the required standard phosphorus calculated at a concentration of 0.3 mg P.L-1 showed a significantly positive correlation with clay (r = 0.80**) and active calcium carbonate (r = 0.77**) contents, but significantly negative correlations with organic carbon (r = -0.63*) and available phosphorus (r = -0.61*). The maximum buffering capacity and the required standard phosphorus were found in the soils of Orzouyeh and Negar regions due to their highest percentage of active calcium carbonate and clay. However, in the soils of Lalezar and Baft regions, due to the presence of more organic carbon and less active calcium carbonate, the lowest standard phosphorus requirement was obtained. It could be concluded that phosphorus sorption in soils is influenced by soil properties such as clay, active calcium carbonate, and organic carbon contents.

Soil studies have been used as complementary data in archaeological investigations. Review and acceptance of papers focusing on the use of micromorphology in archaeology were discussed and agreed in the 12th International Micromorphology Meeting in Turkey (8). Morphology, physicochemical, clay mineralogy, and micromorphology investigations may provide invaluable data about the way ancient people used to live, the source of soil that was used for pottery and architecture, the reason of degradation or existence of monuments, and the suitable soil for the restoration of monuments. On the other hand, the restoration of our ancestor's monuments could be better performed if soil data and micromorphology techniques are used. The present research was conducted to study the ancient and restored sections of Konar Sandal historical (5000 YBP) citadel, South Jiroft, Iran. The area under study located 30 km south of Jiroft in the Halilrud cultural area. Samples were collected from both ancient (3 samples) and restores (1 sample) sections of the citadel. Representative samples (3 from the ancient and the other from the restored sections) were also collected for clay mineralogy and micromorphology (undisturbed samples) investigations after physicochemical analysis performed on all samples. Routine physicochemical analysis performed on the air-dried samples that were passed through a 2 mm sieve. Results of the study showed that the clay percentage of the ancient section was rough twice the restored section. On the other hand, soluble salts were about 3 times higher in the restored section than the ancient section. High salinity and solubility of salts caused restored sections to have lower resistance to environmental variations of the recent years. It seems that saline and gypsiferous soils close to the citadel were used for the restoration of Konar Sandal citadel. However, no gypsum was found in the thin section of the ancient section. Besides, Na monovalent cation plays an important role in the dispersion of soil particles  compared to divalent Ca cation. Results of this study showed that soil with low clay content and high salinity was used for restoration recently. On the other hand, soils for construction of ancient sections with higher clay and lower salinity (compared to restored sections) were probably transferred from another area by our ancestors. Besides, pottery pieces to provide more stickiness and charcoal for more resistance to environmental variations were also used to construct the raw bricks in the old (5000 YBP) monument.
Illite, chlorite, smectite, and kaolinite clay minerals were found in the samples from the ancient section (Fig. 3). Palygorskite, quartz and trace amounts of sepiolite were only found in the restored sections together with the previously mentioned clay minerals (Fig. 4). The absence of palygorskite in the ancient samples may prove the presence of paleoclimate with more available humidity in the area because palygorskite is unstable in humid environments and transforms to smectite. It seems that palygorskite has a pedogenic origin in the area.
Micromorphological observations showed that the organic matter in the groundmass of the ancient samples (Fig. 6 a, b) is the reason for stability in this section. The same conclusion was also reported for samples of Bam citadel by Farpoor (4). Lenticular and interlocked plates of gypsum were found in the restored section (Figs. 6 c, and 7 a, b). Gypsum crystals were not observed in the thin sections of ancient samples. Calcium carbonate nodules were also observed in the ancient section (Fig. 7c). It seems that additives such as pottery pieces together with calcium carbonate have probably increased the stability of raw bricks through time. Physicochemical properties showed more salinity in the restored compared to ancient sections and micromorphology showed gypsum crystals only in the restored samples. Besides, clay content and organic matter in the ancient section are about twice the restored section. Meanwhile, pottery pieces and charcoal were also found in the ancient section. These seem to be a reason for higher stability of ancient sections against environmental variations compared to restores sections with low clay content and high gypsum and more soluble salts that were degraded in 5 years. Illite, chlorite, kaolinite, and smectite clay minerals were investigated in both sections, but palygorskite and quarts were only found in the restored section. Results of the study clearly showed that soil data might be used as a helpful technique in archaeology studies and projects.

Wind erosion is one of the most important land degradation aspects especially in arid and semi-arid regions such as Kerman province. Wind direction and speed are two important erosive factors affecting wind erosion and sediment yield. The purpose of this study was to analyze the erosive winds of the province in order to determine the direction of predominant winds and the status and the potential of wind erosion during different periods of 8 to 11 years.

In this study, wind anemometric data for 8-11 y periods were analyzed using 12 synoptic stations in Kerman province. For this purpose, the WR Plot View software was applied in order to analyze the anemometer data and draw wind roses and storm roses of the selected synoptic stations of the province. Moreover, the sand roses of the studied stations were plotted using the Sand Rose Graph 3 software, accordingly different sand drift potential and direction indices were derived.

The results of wind rose analysis generally indicated that the western and southwestern winds dominated in the western part of the province, whereas the northern winds were more frequent in the eastern part. Storm rose analysis showed that in most stations, the highest erosive winds were mainly blown from the west and south west directions, while at Bam and Shahdad stations the north and at Zarand the southwest and northeast winds were predominate. According to this analysis, the most frequent winds at the speed classes of ≤6.7, 6.7-7.7, and 7.7-9.8 m s-1 were allocated to Jiroft (94.9%), Sirjan (8.0%) and Kahnooj (12.0%) stations, respectively. Among all the stations, Rafsanjan with 10.9%, 5.0%, and 4.1% showed the most frequent winds at the higher speed classes of 9.8-11.8, 11.8-13.9, and ≥13.9 m s-1, respectively. The analysis of resultant drift direction (RDD) implied that sand transport for the western stations of the province was mainly toward east and northeast directions, for Zarand station was from northwest to southeast and for Shahdad and Bam stations was from north to south directions. The minimum amount of total drift potential (DPt) was found at Baft and Jirof stations by 398 and 400 v.u., respectively, while Rafsanjan station with 1665 v.u. experienced the highest value of this index. Except for Baft and Jiroft stations with moderate wind potential, the other stations showed high wind potentials. The analysis of uni-directional index (UDI) indicated that except for Jiroft and Zarand stations which had high variability with multi-directional winds, for the other stations moderate variation with bi-directional winds and oblique angle were observed.

It was concluded that although wind erosivity analysis gives valuable information on wind erosion situation and sediment transport, it is necessary to be considered and used the threshold velocity as well as soil erodibility databases in order to achieve a more accurate analysis of wind erosion in the province.

Wind erosion is one of the most important destructive phenomena leading to land degradation and desertification, which occurs due to blowing of erosive winds over a susceptible soil surface or a smooth land. Iran is mostly located in arid and semiarid climates; consequently, wind erosion dominates large parts of the country due to the climate and land mismanagement. In this regard, Kerman as the largest province in Iran has been under influence of erosive winds with high damaging potential. Wind erosion is a function of two agents including erosivity and erodibility. As wind velocity increases, the rate of wind erosion increases as well, while an increase in threshold friction velocity results in sand drift potential reduction. On the other hand, soil properties can control wind erosion rate through affecting both soil erodibility and threshold velocity. In addition, wind erosion is directly influenced by the direction and velocity of wind. Therefore, for better understanding of this phenomenon, analysis of wind erosivity based on meteorological data is of importance. The aim of this study was to analysis wind erosivity in Kerman province and the wind erosion potential in different parts of the province. This study was conducted to investigate the potential of wind erosion in different parts of Kerman province based on seasonal wind data obtained for the period from 2006 to 2010. For this purpose, eight synoptic stations were selected and wind rose and sand rose were plotted for each station using WR Plot View.8 and Sand Rose Graph 3. For each season and for the whole period, erosive wind speed classes, prevailing wind direction, and the sand rose components including drift potential, sediment load and uni-directional index were obtained for each station. This study results indicated that the intermediate wind speed class i.e. 7.7 to 9.8 m s-1 with the west and southwest directions had the highest frequency at most stations. The most erosive winds occurred during winter and summer, while the lowest ones were found in autumn. In winter, the highest wind speed class i.e. >13 m s-1 was the most frequent class. However, precipitations mostly occurring during winter can moderate the sand transport potential, since the higher precipitation causes a higher soil moisture level and enhanced threshold velocity. In addition, Jiroft station had the most frequent calm winds, whereas Lalehzar station exhibited the least frequency of these winds as this site is located in a mountainous region. Among the stations, the highest potential of sand transport (1637 vector unit) and the greatest sediment discharge (102.62 kg m-1 s-1) were observed at Rafsanjan station. However, the lowest sediment discharge was found at Jiroft station with 22.40 kg m-1 s-1. In all stations, the values of DPt were more than 400 indicating high wind erosion potentials in most areas of the province. The assessment of the uni-directional index illustrated that the investigated wind properties varied for different seasons and regions. Analysis of this index showed that Zarand and Jiroft had multi-directional winds, while other stations with a uni-directional index ranging from 0.3 to 0.8 experienced bi-directional winds with moderate variations. Furthermore, the analysis of resultant drift direction implied that the sand transport direction in Kerman, Jiroft, Sirjan, Rafsanjan and Shahrbabak sites was from west to east, at Lalehzar station was from southwest to northeast, at Bam station was from north to south, and at Zarand station was from northwest to southeast. The highest values of total drift potential in Bam, Jiroft and Zarand were obtained in summer season, while the maximum total drift potential was recorded in wintertime for Kerman, Rafsanjan, Shahrbabak, Sirjan and Lalehzar locations. The findings of this study revealed the significance of wind erosivity analysis in order to make a better understanding of wind erosion processes and achieve a more suitable strategy to combat this environmental threat. It was concluded that due to climate conditions, Kerman province as the largest province of Iran has experienced high potentials of wind erosion and sand transport. In addition, the prevailing direction and most frequent velocity classes of winds differ among different parts of the province demonstrating the possibility of the formation of different features of wind erosion. Finally, the high values of DPt (> 400) were obtained for most stations, showed a high wind erosion potential in the province.

 Soil digital mapping represents a set of mathematical computations to predict the distribution of soil classes in the landscape. This approach relies on statistical relationships between measured soil observations and environmental covariates at the sampling locations. The need for digital soil mapping as an addition to conventional soil surveys results from a worldwide growing demand for high- resolution digital soil maps for environmental protection and management as well as projects of the public authorities. Digital soil data is increasing based on new processing tools and various digital data. The digital identification of soils as a tool for creating soil spatial data provides ways to address the growing need for high-resolution soil maps. The main objective of this study is to generate the digital soil map based on the legacy soil data. The study area is located in southeastern Iran, 330 km from Kerman city, in Faryab distinct. In this study, a Latin hypercube sampling design was applied and the sampling was done according to the difference in landforms (geomorphology map), topography (including digital elevation map) and geology. The geographic locations of 70 profiles were identified. Soil profiles were described according to U.S. Soil Taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 2014) and finally, the soil samples were taken from their diagnostic horizons. The collected soil samples were transferred to the laboratory, and some physical and chemical analyzes were performed based on routine standard methods. Environmental data include the parameters derived from the digital elevation model, Landsat satellite images (remote sensing indexes), geology map, geomorphic units (geomorphology map) and legacy soil map of the study area. All environmental variables were derived using ENVI and SAGA software. In this research, a multinomial logistic regression model was used to predict soil classes and the modeling was done in two scenarios: 1- modeling without the legacy soil map and 2- modeling with the legacy soil map. Estimation of predictive accuracy of soil classes was also done using the overall accuracy index and Kappa coefficient. The result of the modeling with the multinomial logistic regression method in two sets of input variables showed that the topographic position index is the most effective variable in predicting soil classes. This confirms topographic importance on soil genesis in the studied area. After topographic variables, the legacy soil data is an effective parameter in modeling. The legacy data of soil is a strong and valuable database for predicting soil characteristics. The old soil map consists of the salt surfaces and Inceptisols order. Unlike the hot and arid climate of the study area, Inceptisols order was identified in the old soil map. Soil survey with very small scale was probably led to generalization of the studied soils and hiding the main soils of the study area. However, the small-scale mapping and the presentation of different soils in the region do not prevent the presence of the old soil map as an important predictor. It seems that there is a high concordance between the borders of old soil map and the described soils diversity in the study area. The matching and concordance between the boundaries of the old map and the described soil profiles help the model to differentiate different soils, although the correspondence between the soils type of the old soil map and the observed soils can play a more effective role in predicting by the model. Soil legacy information is a powerful and valuable database for predicting any feature of the soil. In both predicted maps, four major groups of Haplosalids, Haplocambids, Haplocalcids and Torriorthents were identified. The great group of Torriorthents is located in the north of the region and in the alluvial fan landform. Haplosalids great groups were most commonly found in clayey surfaces. Haplocambids and Haplocalcids great groups are located more in the geomorphic surface of the cultivated fan and the piedmont plain, respectively. The results of the predictive quality of the logistic regression model showed that the number of well-estimated soils in the presence of the old soil map is more than when there is no old soil map in the modeling. In addition, the results of the validation of the models showed that the map accuracy and kappa index increased in presence of the legacy soil map. As a result, the model's validation indices including the map purity and Kappa index increased from 0.47 and 0.16 to 0.63 and 0.43, respectively. In both models, the highest accuracy of the estimation was obtained for Haplocambids great group. The results showed that topographic position index was the most important and powerful variable for forecasting in both models, and confirms that topography or relief is the most important soil forming factor in the study area. Using the legacy soil map as one of the environmental variables in modeling, efficiency and accuracy are more accurate than modeling without the legacy soil map. If the old soil maps as legacy information are used in digital soil mapping, the similarity and matching of the soils of the studied area shoud be cheched even with the very small scale because the high concordance leads to rational prediction, and random and chance predictions do not occur.

Introduction: Under natural conditions, intensive and erosive storms commonly associate with high-speed winds. In fact, wind velocity affects water erosion rate through enforcing falling drops and enhancing rainfall erosivity. Therefore, knowledge of interaction between wind and rain as erosive agents on interrill erosion is of prime importance. However, no comprehensive study has been done on this topic under controlled laboratory conditions. This study was conducted to investigate interrill erosion affected by different rain intensities and wind velocities on several soils with different aggregate size distributions using the Simultaneous Wind-Rainfall-Runoff Simulator (SWRRS). For this purpose, a multisystem was constructed for the first time in Iran to investigate the simultaneous effects of wind and rain erosivity agents on soil erosion under laboratory conditions. Materials and Methods: The simulator was calibrated in two cases. First, the intensity and uniformity of the simulated rains were assessed for each nozzle, separately. Second, the calibration procedure was performed for different combinations of the selected nozzles to achieve the best performance. For each case, different water pressures were generated to introduce several water discharges and make initial raindrop velocities. Afterwards, the interrill erosion experiment was done using four constant wind speeds including 0, 6, 9 and 12 m s-1at the height of 40 cm which were applied in combination with three rain intensities of 30, 50 and 75 mm h-1 on three soil samples with different aggregate size distributions (D2mm, D4.75mm and D8mm). Each treatment was conducted at three replicates under laboratory controlled conditions. By using different wind speeds, rain intensities and soil aggregate sizes, interrill erosion rate was measured under steady state conditions. Results and Discussion: Results showed that wind velocity has a significant effect on interrill erosion rate and the interaction between wind and rain on interrill erosion was significant, as well. Although, there was no significant difference between the erosion rate at wind velocity of 0 and 6 m s-1, the wind velocity of 9 and 12 m s-1 showed significant difference with and higher erosion rates than the velocity of 6 m s-1. The mean erosion rate at wind velocities of 0, 6, 9, 12 m s-1 was 0.43 × 10-4, 0.54 × 10-4, 0.97 × 10-4 and 1.46 × 10-4 kg m-2 s-1, respectively. With increasing rain intensity from 30 to 75 mm h-1, the erosion rate increased from 0.52 × 10-4 to 1.16 × 10-4 kg m-2 s-1. On average, the erosion rate of the soil containing larges aggregates i.e. D8mm (0.73 × 10-4 kg m-2 s-1) was less than that with the finest aggregates i.e. D2mm (0.99 × 10-4 kg m-2 s-1). The findings of this study highlighted the importance and necessity of more attention to wind speed particularly those velocities faster than a threshold velocity in the study of interrill erosion. Conclusion: In arid and semi-arid regions such as most parts of Iran, rainstorms are usually accompanied by strong winds. Despite the undeniable influence of wind on the erosive power of rain, a host of research has investigated water and wind erosion processes, separately. Therefore, this study was done to investigate the simultaneous effect of wind velocity and rain intensity on interrill erosion rate in three soil samples. The results indicated that wind velocity has a remarkable influence on interrill erosion rate due to wind-driven rain. Wind velocities faster than 6 m s-1 increased interrill soil erosion rate, particularly those combined with higher rain intensities. This is due to an increase in the velocity of falling raindrops on the soil surface which results in greater kinetic energy. Also, the findings showed that the soil containing coarser aggregates due to greater random roughness exhibited less sensitivity and interrill erosion rates as compared with the soil having finer aggregates, especially at faster wind velocities. The rate of interrill erosion in soil D2mm was 1.35 times higher than soil D8mm indicating the importance of random roughness. In addition, there was no significant difference between the measured erosion rates at wind speeds of 0 and 6 m s-1, in all cases. However, with increasing wind speed from 6 to 9 and also to 12 m s-1, significant increases in soil erosion rates were observed. Accordingly, a threshold wind velocity can be considered in wind-driven interrill erosion. The findings of the present study can be applied for better understanding and modeling of water and wind erosion mechanisms and dominant processes.

Soil spectroscopy in the visible and near infrared (Vis-NIR) range has widely been used as a rapid, cost-effective, and non-destructive technique to predict soil properties. Since little data is available about soil properties determined by using this technique, the present research was carried out to evaluate the efficiency of Vis-NIR spectroscopy to estimate several soil properties in Bardsir area, Kerman Province. About 150 complex surface soil samples were collected from four different land uses from depth of 0-20 cm. Soil organic carbon, equivalent calcium carbonate, pH, and the amount of silt, clay and sand particles were measured by routine laboratory methods. Reflectance spectra were obtained from air-dried samples under controlled laboratory conditions using an ASD FieldSpec Pro spectroradiometer in 350-2500 nm wavelength range. Partial least squares regression was used for calibration of spectral and laboratory data using cross validation. Coefficient of variation for organic carbon, equivalent calcium carbonate, sand, silt, clay, and pH values were 0.68, 0.62, 0.64, 0.66, 0.3, and 0.01, respectively. Based on RPD values (Ratio of Prediction to Deviation), the precision of the prediction model for sand and silt contents was quite suitable, and for organic carbon and equivalent calcium carbonate it was suitable. [H1] However, the predictions of the model for clay content and pH were poor.Furthermore, standard normal variate (SNV) was the best pre-processing method to predict organic carbon, whereas, first derivative with SG smoothing (FD-SG) showed better estimation for carbonate, sand, and silt. Consequently, Vis-NIR spectroscopy is capable of predicting several soil properties at the same time. As the model accuracy is acceptable, it has the potential to substitute conventional laboratory analyses of selected soil properties.