Soil is a mixture of inorganic and organic solids, air and water. Soil chemistry involves the chemical reactions and processes between these components and particularly focuses on investigating the fate of contaminants and nutrients within soils. Knowledge of soil chemistry allows scientists to monitor, control and predict the effects of pollutants in the environment. Chemical knowledge combined with understandings from the Earth sciences, physics and biology are needed to understand, prevent and remediate environmental issues with soils. Learn the secrets of soil chemistry and its role in agriculture and the environment. Examine the fundamental laws of soil chemistry, how they affect dissolution, cation and anion exchange, and other reactions. Explore how water can form water-bridges and hydrogen bonding, the most common forces in adsorption, chelation, and more. This book is intended for use by researchers, scientists and engineers in their research or in their professional practice, and for use as a textbook in one-semester or onequarter courses on soil chemistry or biogeochemistry.

Dr. Majeed Ul Hassan Chesti is Assistant Professor (Senior Scale), Soil Science at Directorate of Extension, SKUAST-Kashmir, Shalimar, Srinagar, J&K, India. He has completed his M.Sc. (Soil Science) in 2002 from Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Deemed University and Ph.D (Soil Science) from SKUAST-Kashmir in 2007. He has been awarded Gold medal by securing first position in M.Sc. (Soil Science) as well as awarded merit certificate in Ph.D (Soil Science). He has more than 12 years of Research/Extension/Teaching experience and has also to his credit more than 40 research publications in peer reviewed national and international journals, one book and 5 book chapters. He has successfully completed two externally funded research projects sponsored by J&K State Council for Science and Technology and ICAR (Horticulture Technology mission). Prof. Deepak Kher is presently working as Director, Planning & Monitoring in SKUAST-J. He did his M.Sc.(Soil Science) from Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana in 1983 and Ph.D. from CSK HPKV, Palampur in 1987 and a recipient of University Gold Medal. Dr. Kher has also served as officiating Director Research in SKUAST-Jammu. He has 30 years of experience in teaching, research and planning and has guided many PG students. He has published more than 55 research papers in national and international journals of repute.