Anortosite_Manuscritp

Weathering of anorthosite saprolites and their influence on soil formation and mineralogy in the Borborema province, northeastern Brazil
Our study explores regoliths formed from the weathering of anorthosite, a rock of significant interest in earth sciences concerning surface processes.
Utilizing an interdisciplinary approach, our research investigates the interface between the lithosphere and the pedosphere by combining saprolithology and pedology. We selected representative regolith profiles in a stable landscape with minimal anthropogenic interference.
Among the primary novelties, we highlight that the main pedogenetic process forming soils derived from anorthosite is clay enrichment, primarily through the weathering of plagioclases. Additionally, our findings reveal that the porosity system of the saprolite significantly influences the intensity of pedogenetic processes and the formation of clay minerals, leading to soil differentiation, we described the first evidence of smectite formation in soils from this rock in tropical regions.
Thus, this methodology provided valuable insights into soil formation processes occurring throughout the entire anorthosite regolith, emphasizing the importance of the interdisciplinary whole regolith approach.