Organic carbon - W & B (6A1)

This measure of soil organic carbon (OC_W&B; expressed as %C) usually yields a lower figure than the true total organic carbon value. The method uses finely-milled air-dry sample. It involves wet oxidation by a dichromate-sulphuric acid mixture and relies only on heat of reaction. Soil weight should take account of the expected concentration of OC, and it is expected that allowance will be made for positive soluble Cl^‑ interference in soils containing >0.5% Cl. The method specifies reporting on an oven-dry (105^oC) basis. Nowadays this method is less preferred than 6B methods.