Balan Etienne auteur aut IRD Fritsch Emmanuel auteur aut IRD Allard T. auteur aut IRD Calas G. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf born digital access The tropical weathering of sedimentary kaolin deposits from the plateaux surrounding Manaus (Alter do Chao formation, Amazon basin, Brazil) leads to the in situ formation of thick kaolinitic soils. The structural changes of kaolinite have been investigated quantitatively by infrared spectroscopy and electron paramagnetic resonance. Both techniques consistently show that each sample contains two types of kaolinite in various proportions. The progressive decrease in kaolinite order from the bottom to the top of the profile results from the gradual replacement of an old population of well-ordered kaolinite, typical of the underlying sedimentary kaolin, by a more recent generation of poorly ordered soil kaolinite. The vertical pattern of kaolinite replacement differs from that of the transformation of Fe oxides and oxyhydroxides previously observed in the same profile. The inherited fraction of well-ordered kaolinite ranges from 60% at a depth of 9 in to 30% in the upper levels of the soil. The persistence of sedimentary kaolinite in the upper horizons suggests that the rate of kaolinite transformation is relatively slow at the time scale of lateritic soil formation. Kaolinite inheritance unlocks the lateritic record of past weathering conditions. specialized disorder EPR infrared kaolinite laterite 064 55 3 253-259 2007 0009-8604 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010040665 10.1346/CCMN.2007.0550303 0009-8604 [F B010040665] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010040665 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/intranet/publi/2007/09/010040665.pdf Accès réservé (Intranet de l'IRD) IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2007-10-11 2017-08-23 fdi:010040665 fre