Boletín de la Sociedad Geológica Mexicana Volumen 66, núm. 2, 2014, p. 365-376 http://dx.doi.org/10.18268/BSGM2014v66n2a11

El potencial del magnetismo en la clasificación de suelos: una revisión

Francisco Bautista^1,*, Rubén Cejudo-Ruiz¹, Bertha Aguilar-Reyes², Avto Gogichaishvili²

¹ Laborario Universitario de Geofísica Ambiental, Centro de Investigaciones en Geografía Ambiental, Campus Morelia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Antigua carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de San José de la Huerta, C.P. 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, México.
² Laborario Universitario de Geofísica Ambiental, Instituto de Geofísica-Unidad Michoacán, Campus Morelia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Antigua carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de San José de la Huerta, C.P. 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, México.

^* This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

Soils contain variable amounts of Fe oxides, which may be used as indicators of pedogenic processes and the environments related to soil formation. Also, their presence affects soil properties and functions, because it influences the color, aggregation, cation exchange capacity, and phosphorus retention in soils. Since Fe oxides are ferrimagnetic minerals, pedogenetic processes may be revealed using magnetic techniques. The aim of this study was to describe the magnetic properties of soils and their potential applications as proxy parameters in the classification of soils. We describe and discuss here the main magnetic carriers, their properties, forms of analysis and applications. The magnetic properties of soils may be used to identify and quantify the magnetic minerals. The magnetic measurements are easy, fast and inexpensive, which allows the analysis of a large number of samples, thereby allowing mapping of soils, identification of pedogenic processes and improvements in soil classification.

Keywords: soil genesis, soil cartography, soil process, magnetism.