Question

Laterite soil is rich in
a. Nitrogen
b. Iron
c. Aluminum
d. Both B and C

Answer 1

Hint: Laterite is a soil, usually formed in hot and wet tropical areas, almost all laterite soil are rusty red in coloration, and they may develop by intensive prolong laterization or weathering of the underlying parent rock.

Complete answer:
- Laterite soil is present as both soil type and Rock-type.
- This laterite soil is very rich in iron and aluminum. And because of this rich iron context, it is rust red in color.
- Buchanan-Hamilton is the person who first described the laterite formation in south India.
- In India, in Madhya Pradesh, laterite which caps the slope is 30 meters in thickness.
- Weathering is the process, by which laterite is formed.
- The initial products of weathering, produce kaolinized rocks called Saprolites.
- Mid-tertiary to Mid-quaternary period is considered an active weathering period.
- Laterite is formed by the leaching of parent sedimentary rocks. Which leaves the most amount of iron and aluminum ions.
- The mechanism of leaching involves the acid dissolving of the parent lattice, which in turn is formed by the precipitation of insoluble oxides, sulfates of iron, and also the aluminum, under high-temperature condition.
- The most important feature for the formation of laterite is repeated wet and dry seasons.
Laterite soil has high cation exchange and water holding capacity, which is because particles are so small, and water is easily trapped between them.

Hence, the correct answer is option (D).

Note: Chemical composition of Laterite is dependent on the parent rock, and it mainly consists of quartz, zirconia, and it also contains the oxides of different metals, such as iron, aluminum, tin, manganese, titanium, etc. Out of all the abundant relic minerals is quartz found in the parent rock.