Abstract: The abundance of soil phosphorus controls the development of primary productivity of ecosystems. The structure and the physical-chemical properties of soil have been long-time affected by the periodical drying-rewetting alternation which has a significant impact on the transportation and transformation of soil phosphorus. In this review, we summarize recent researches on the process of phosphorus transport and transformation due to soil moisture content, soil adsorption characteristics and soil microbes in the presence of drying-rewetting alternations. The main results are: (1) moisture content changes soil porosity and its transmission path, stimulates the mineralization of organic matter and redox intensity to different extents, thus affecting the transportation and transformation of soil phosphorus; (2) drying-rewetting alternation changes soil particle size, adsorption sites and the forms of metallic compounds, thus affecting the soil adsorption properties of phosphorus; (3) microbiological phosphorus becomes a main source of soil phosphorus in the process of drying-rewetting alternations, and the physiology response of microorganisms is a key factor affecting the soil phosphorus. Further research prospects are also put forward in this review.

Key words: soil, phosphorus, drying-rewetting alternation, transportation and transformation, ecosystem