Rates of Biotite Weathering, and Clay Mineral Transformation and Neoformation, Determined from Watershed Geochemical Mass-Balance Methods for the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory, Southern Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina, USA

Aquatic Geochemistry volume 20, pages203–224(2014)Cite this article

Abstract

Biotite is a common constituent of silicate bedrock. Its weathering releases plant nutrients and consumes atmospheric CO2. Because of its stoichiometric relationship with its transformational weathering product and sensitivity to botanical activity, calculating biotite weathering rates using watershed mass-balance methods has proven challenging. At Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory the coupling of biotite to its transformational weathering product is only valid if the stoichiometric relationship for the two phases is known; this relationship is unlikely layer-for-layer. Rates of biotite weathering and transformation of its secondary weathering product at the Coweeta Hydrological Laboratory are comparable with other Appalachian watersheds. The magnitude and sign of the difference between field- and laboratory-determined biotite weathering rates are similar to those of other silicate minerals. The influence of major-cation proportions in biomass on the rates of biotite weathering and transformational weathering product is greatest for watersheds with high biomass aggradation rates. The watershed with the lowest bedrock reactivity and highest flushing rate yielded the highest gibbsite formation rate of ~500 mol ha−1 year−1 and lowest kaolin-group mineral formation rates of 4–78 mol ha−1 year−1. The kaolin-group mineral formation rate increases as bedrock reactivity increases and flushing rate decreases to a maximum of ~300 mol ha−1 year−1, with a similar minimum gibbsite formation rate. The relative differences in bedrock reactivity and flux of water through Coweeta Hydrological Laboratory watersheds studied appear to be invariant over geologic timescales.

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Acknowledgments

The second author is grateful to Robert A. Berner, Brij L. Sawhney, Robert J. Tracy, Garth K. Voigt, and the late Finley C. Bishop, for introducing him to mica crystal chemistry, clay mineralogy and weathering. After the second author relocated to Michigan State University (MSU), Max M. Mortland generously shared his experience and insights into mica weathering, for which the second author is most grateful. An early version of this work was presented at the 1985 annual meeting of the Soil Science Society of America; Joe Dixon is thanked for his comments on that presentation. Several former MSU graduate students (in addition to the first author) have contributed to the second author’s understanding of biotite weathering at CHL, especially Allan B. Taylor and Daniel Gierman. The second author is also indebted to Warren Huff for his helpful advice, and Emery T. Cleaves, Karl K. Turekian, Blair F. Jones and Owen P. Bricker for their encouragement. Early biotite weathering studies at CHL were supported by NSF Grant EAR 80-07815 (R.A. Berner, P.I). Continued mass-balance studies of silicate-mineral weathering at CHL by the first author were supported by a Grant-in-Aid of Research and Sigma Xi. Additional funding was provided by a Michigan Space Grant Consortium Graduate Fellowship, Clay Minerals Society Student Grant, and a Lucile Drake Pringle Fellowship. The authors thank two anonymous reviewers whose thoughtful reviews greatly improved this manuscript and Suzanne Bricker for editorial handling.

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  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Millersville University, P.O. Box 1002, Millersville, PA, 17551-0302, USA

    Jason R. Price

  2. Department of Geological Sciences, Michigan State University, 288 Farm Lane, 206 Natural Science Building, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1115, USA

    Michael A. Velbel

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Price, J.R., Velbel, M.A. Rates of Biotite Weathering, and Clay Mineral Transformation and Neoformation, Determined from Watershed Geochemical Mass-Balance Methods for the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory, Southern Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina, USA. Aquat Geochem 20, 203–224 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10498-013-9190-y

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Keywords

  • Biotite
  • Weathering
  • Watersheds
  • Mass balance
  • Rates
  • Clays