Sorption and Desorption of Testosterone in Agricultural Soils

Several studies regarding sorption and dissipation of testosterone in soils have been conducted recently; these studies concluded that the transport of testosterone is limited in the soil/water system. However, this may not explain wide occurrences of testosterone in ground and surface water. In this study, soils from two agricultural fields located in Nebraska, with 3 depths in each location, were utilized to study sorption and desorption of testosterone. The sorption results of batch tests indicated that the Freundlich sorption capacity of the soils ranged from 8.53–38.82 μg^1–nmLⁿg^–1. The results of desorption experiments indicated that after 3 washes by hormone free distilled water, about 35.14– 102.35 % of the testosterone adsorbed onto the soil in the adsorption tests were desorbed from the soil. Correlations between sorption and soil properties such as cation exchange capacity, surface area, and soil organic matter were investigated. Also, the behavior of sorption and desorption of soils at different depths was compared.