Impact of Fly Ash on Soil Properties

Management of fly ash is a major environmental and economic concern for the coal fired power generators all over the world. Fly ash is rich in many macro and micro plant nutrients. Present study was conducted to evaluate the impact of fly ash incorporation on physico-chemical properties of soil for agricultural purposes. Pot culture experiments were conducted to find out the most suitable level of fly ash for soil amendment that can improve the fertility of soil leading to higher productivity of the test crop. 40% fly ash was found most suitable for growth and yield of test crop. The amended soil was analyzed for different physico-chemical properties. It was observed that fly ash altered the soil texture, decrease bulk density, increase water holding capacity, soil porosity, pH, electrical conductivity and organic carbon values of the soil. A marginal increase was also observed in the concentration of P, K, S, Fe, Zn, Mn, B, Ca and Mg elements in the fly ash amended soil. However, there was marked decrease in N content of the soil.