caliche
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ca·li·che
(kə-lē′chē)n.
1.
a. A mineral deposit rich in sodium nitrate occurring naturally in Chile, Peru, and the southwest United States, and used as fertilizer, in explosives, and as a raw material for manufacturing nitric acid.
b. See sodium nitrate.
2.
a. The accretions of calcium carbonate in soil.
b. See hardpan.
[American Spanish, from Spanish, pebble in a brick, flake of lime, from cal, lime, from Latin calx, calc-, lime; see calx.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
caliche
(kæˈliːtʃɪ)n
1. (Geological Science) Also called: calcrete a bed of sand or clay in arid regions cemented by calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, and other soluble minerals
2. (Geological Science) a surface layer of soil encrusted with calcium carbonate, occurring in arid regions. Also called: duricrust
[C20: from American Spanish, from Latin calx lime]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ca•li•che
(kəˈli tʃi)n.
1. a surface deposit of sodium nitrate found in South American desert areas: formerly a major source of chemical fertilizer.
2. a zone of calcium carbonate or other carbonates in soils of semiarid regions.
Compare hardpan. [1855–60; < Sp: flake of lime]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. | caliche - crust or layer of hard subsoil encrusted with calcium-carbonate occurring in arid or semiarid regions |
| 2. | caliche - nitrate-bearing rock or gravel of the sodium nitrate deposits of Chile and Peru |
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