An investigation of the adsorption of chlorsulfuron by four selected soil constituents, i.e. humic acid, two iron oxides, and montmorillonite, was carried out under concentration and pH conditions similar to those in most natural soils. CaCl2 (0.01 M) was used as background electrolyte to suppress nonspecific adsorption. Negligible amounts of chlorsulfuron were adsorbed by montmorillonite, whereas humic acid and the iron oxides were found to be important adsorbents. For these adsorbents, chlorsulfuron adsorption decreased when pH increased from 4 to 8, with little adsorption occurring at pH 8. Adsorption by iron oxides was a function of their surface area. Chlorsulfuron adsorption was found to be closely related to the surface charge of the adsorbents, but in weakly acidic solution, also to the acid-base properties of chlorsulfuron itself.
