noun
- The process by which soil materials are removed from the upper layers of soil and transported downward or laterally by water percolating through the soil.
Usage: geology; soil science
Examples
- Eluviation removes soluble minerals from the topsoil, leaving behind less fertile material.
- Heavy rainfall accelerates eluviation in sandy soils.
- The process of eluviation is responsible for the formation of distinct soil horizons.
- Geologists study eluviation to understand how soil profiles develop over time.
- Eluviation and illuviation work together to redistribute nutrients in the soil column.