Weathering Indexes of Typical Pedons Derived from Different Parent Materials of the Soils of Korea

Weathering indexes of the typical pedons derived from different parent materials of the soils of Korea were calculated by Kronberg and Nesbitt (1981) to understand weathering degree of the soils which might give a clue of soil formation and characterizing a soil pedon. The weathering index W1 was chemical change index, and the weathering index W2 was silicate dominant index. The chemical compositions of the 49 typic pedons were extracted from the Taxonomical Classification of Korean Soils (NIAST, 1999). The weathering indexes of Kimhae series, derived from fluvio marine material, were the highest among the analyzed soils. Within parent materials, the weathering indexes of the soils derived from limestones parent materials were high, and those derived from phorphyry materials were low. The relationship between W1 and W2 showed unique pattern which implied certain sequence within the same parent materials.