Iron Oxide Contents in Relation to the Colour of Asnawa Soils

Asnawa soils contain high amounts of iron oxides. These minerals apply much influence on different soil properties, of which the most observable is colour. The objective of this study was to conclude if colour of soils measured by visual methods can be parameterized to quantify soil Fe oxides. The examined area was divided to three zones (zone A, zone B and zone C) according to their colour intensity. Forty soil samples were examined for their colour and iron oxide contents. Their colour were ranged between 5YR (H) 2.5 (V/C) to 5YR (H) 5/8 (V/C). The average values of free Fe oxide in the soils of the three zones were 52.1%, 36.8% and 15.9% respectively. A new formula was derived to measure colour intensity. A highly significant correlation was found between colour intensity and concentrations of Fe oxides in the examined soils