Rock Magnetic Methods in Soil and Environmental Studies: Fundamentals and Case Studies

Rock magnetic methods have increasingly been applied in many fields of study as they are relatively easy, fast, non-destructive and affordable. We present some examples of such applications in soil and environmental studies that had been conducted at InstitutTeknologi Bandung by its faculty members and graduate students. After a brief introduction on fundamentals of rock magnetism, we described our study on lateritic soil from Pomalaa, which show that magnetic properties correlate well with soil horizons suggesting that magnetic methods could be used as additional tools in pedogenic studies. We also described our study in leachate sludge samples from two sites near Bandung showing that leachate sludge samples are reasonably magnetic and that correlation between magnetic parameters and heavy metal content might exist. Supported by other analyses, such as SEM and XRD, we were also able to identify the sources of magnetic grains in leachate sludge.