Investigating the spectral characteristic and humification degree of dissolved organic matter in saline-alkali soil using spectroscopic techniques

Abstract

Soil samples were collected from the areas surrounding Wuliangsuhai Lake in China. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) was extracted from the samples and characterized by fluorescence and UV-Vis spectra. Spectral properties and humification degree of DOM were studied. The results indicated that both humic- and protein-like fluorophores were present in the DOM spectra, and the former was the dominant component. The analysis of humification (HIX) and r (A, C) indices revealed that the maximum humification degree in three agricultural soils (AAF, ASC, and ASW) was presented in the second soil layer (20–40 cm). However, the humification degree of the two Halophytes soils (SSE and GKF) decreased with increasing depth. One index, I_344/270, showed that humification degree increased gradually with an increasing proportion of humic-like acid. There was a significant positive correlation between humification degree (HIX) and aromaticity (SUVA₂₅₄), indicating that a higher aromaticity corresponded to a higher humification degree. Land use was an important factor responsible for the major difference of cation exchange capacity (CEC) in different soils, which led to a higher CEC value in the second soil layer for the three agricultural soils. CEC values and humification degree had the same trend for all five soils. The correlation analysis showed that there was a significant positive correlation between HIX and CEC, and a negative correlation between the r (A, C) index and CEC, indicating that humification degree increases gradually with increasing CEC values.

Keywords

dissolved organic matter / fluorescence spectroscopy / humification degree / cation exchange capacity

References

[1] Bache B W (1976). The measurement of cation exchange capacity of soils. J Sci Food Agric, 27(3): 273–280

[2] Baker A (2001). Fluorescence excitation-emission matrix characterization of some sewage-impacted rivers. Environ Sci Technol, 35(5): 948–953

[3] Birdwell J E, Engel A S (2010). Characterization of dissolved organic matter in cave and spring waters using UV-Vis absorbance and fluorescence spectroscopy. Org Geochem, 41(3): 270–280

[4] Chen W, Westerhoff P, Leenheer J A, Booksh K (2003). Fluorescence excitation- emission matrix regional integration to quantify spectra for dissolved organic matter. Environ Sci Technol, 37(24): 5701–5710

[5] Chin Y P, Aiken G, Danielsen K M (1997). Binding of pyrene to aquatic and commercial humic substances: the role of molecular weight and aromaticity. Environ Sci Technol, 31(6): 1630–1635

[6] Chin Y P, Aiken G, O’Loughlin E (1994). Molecular weight, polydispersity, and spectroscopic properties of aquatic humic substances. Environ Sci Technol, 28(11): 1853–1858

[7] Cilenti A, Provenzano M R, Senesi N (2005). Characterization of dissolved organic matter from saline soils by fluorescence spectroscopy. Environ Chem Lett, 3(2): 53–56 doi:10.1007/s10311-005-0001-6

[8] Coble P G (1996). Characterization of marine and terrestrial DOM in seawater using excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy. Mar Chem, 51(4): 325–346

[9] De Souza Sierra M M, Donard O F X, Lamotte M, Belin C, Ewald M (1994). Fluorescence spectroscopy of coastal and marine waters. Mar Chem, 47(2): 127–144

[10] Fuzzi S, Mandrioli P, Perfetto A (1997). Fog droplets·—An atmospheric sources of secondary biological aerosol particles. Atmos Environ, 31(2): 287–290

[11] He X S, Xi B D, Wei Z M, Guo X J, Li M X, An D, Liu H L (2011b). Spectroscopic characterization of water extractable organic matter during composting of municipal solid waste. Chemosphere, 82(4): 541–548

[12] He X S, Xi B D, Wei Z M, Jiang Y H, Geng C M, Yang Y, Yuan Y, Liu H L (2011a). Physicochemical and spectroscopic characteristics of dissolved organic matter extracted from municipal solid waste (MSW) and their influence on the landfill biological stability. Bioresour Technol, 102(3): 2322–2327

[13] Holtzclaw K M, Sposito G (1979). Analytical properties of the soluble metal-complexing fractions in sludge-soil mixtures. IV. Determination of carboxyl groups in fulvic acid. Soil Sci Soc Am J, 43(2): 318–323

[14] Huang G F, Wu Q T, Wong J W C, Nagar B B (2006). Transformation of organic matter during co-composting of pig manure with sawdust. Bioresour Technol, 97(15): 1834–1842

[15] Huguet A, Vacher L, Relexans S, Saubusse S, Froidefond J M, Parlanti E (2009). Properties of fluorescent dissolved organic matter in the Gironde Estuary. Org Geochem, 40(6): 706–719

[16] Hunt J F, Ohno T (2007). Characterization of fresh and decomposed dissolved organic matter using excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy and multiway analysis. J Agric Food Chem, 55(6): 2121–2128

[17] Hur J, Kim G (2009). Comparison of the heterogeneity within bulk sediment humic substances from a stream and reservoir via selected operational descriptors. Chemosphere, 75(4): 483–490

[18] Hur J, Lee D H, Shin H S (2009). Comparison of the structural, spectroscopic and phenanthrene binding characteristics of humic acids from soils and lake sediments. Org Geochem, 40(10): 1091–1099

[19] Hur J, Schlautman M A (2003). Using selected operational descriptors to examine the heterogeneity within a bulk humic substance. Environ Sci Technol, 37(5): 880–887

[20] Kalbitz K, Geyer W, Geyer S (1999). Spectroscopic properties of dissolved humic substances—A reflection of land use history in a fen area. Biogeochemistry, 47(2): 219–238

[21] Kalbitz K, Schmerwitz J, Schwesig D, Matzner E (2003). Biodegradation of soil-derived dissolved organic matter as related to its properties. Geoderma, 113(3–4): 273–291

[22] Knoth de Zarruk K, Scholer G, Dudal Y (2007). Fluorescence fingerprints and Cu2+-complexing ability of individual molecular size fractions in soil- and waste-borne DOM. Chemosphere, 69(4): 540–548

[23] Leenheer J A, Croué J P (2003). Characterizing aquatic dissolved organic matter. Environ Sci Technol, 37(1): 18A–26A

[24] Lombardi A T, Jardim W J (1999). Fluorescence spectroscopy of high performance liquid chromatography fractionated marine and terrestrial organic materials. Water Res, 33(2): 512–520

[25] Lu R K (1999). Soil Agricultural Chemical Analysis Method. Beijing: China Agriculture Science and Technique Press (in Chinese)

[26] Manrique L A, Jones C A, Dyke P T (1991). Predicting cation exchange capacity from soil physical and chemical properties. Soil Sci Soc Am J, 55(3): 787–794

[27] McDowell W H (2003). Dissolved organic matter in soils—Future directions and unanswered questions. Geoderma, 113(3–4): 179–186

[28] McKnight D M, Andrews E D, Spaulding S A, Aiken G R (1994). Aquatic fulvic acids in algal-rich Antarctic ponds. Limnol Oceanogr, 39(8): 1972–1979

[29] McKnight D M, Boyer E W, Westerhoff P K, Doran P T, Kulbe T, Andersen D T (2001). Spectrofluorometric characterization of dissolved organic matter for indication of precursor organic materials and aromaticity. Limnol Oceanogr, 46(1): 38–48

[30] Miano T M, Senesi N (1992). Synchronous excitation fluorescence spectroscopy applied to soil humic substances chemistry. Sci Total Environ, 117– 118: 41–51

[31] Milori D M B P, Martin-NetoL , BayerC, Mielniczuk J, BagnatoV S (2002). Humification degree of soil humic acids determined by fluorescence spectroscopy. Soil Sci, 167(11): 739–749

[32] Mopper K, Schultz C A (1993). Fluorescence as a possible tool for studying the nature and water column distribution of DOC components. Mar Chem, 41(1–3): 229–238

[33] Nishijima W, Speitel G E Jr (2004). Fate of biodegradable dissolved organic carbon produced by ozonation on biological activated carbon. Chemosphere, 56(2): 113–119

[34] Ohno T, Chorover J, Omoike A, Hunt J (2007). Molecular weight and humification index as predictors of adsorption for plant- and manure-derived dissolved organic matter to goethite. Eur J Soil Sci, 58(1): 125–132

[35] Patel-Sorrentino N, Mounier S, Benaim J Y (2002). Excitation-emission fluorescence matrix to study pH influence on organic mater fluorescence in the Amazon basin rivers. Water Res, 36(10): 2571–2581

[36] Rietz D N, Haynes R J (2003). Effects of irrigation-induced salinity and sodicity on soil microbial activity. Soil Biol Biochem, 35(6): 845–854

[37] Schnitzler F, Lavorenti A, Berns A E, Drewes N , VereeckenH , BurauelP (2007). The influence of maize residues on the mobility and binding of benazolin: investigating physically extracted soil fractions. Environ Pollut, 147(1): 4–13

[38] Senesi N, Miano T M, Provenzano M R, Brunett G (1991). Characterization, differentiation, and classification of humic substances by fluorescence spectroscopy. Soil Sci, 152(4): 259–271 doi:10.1097/00010694-199110000-00004

[39] Stevenson F J (1994). Humus chemistry: Genesis, Composition, Reactions (2nd ed). New York: John Wiley & Sons

[40] Sumner M E (1995). Sodic soils: new perspectives. In: Naidu R, Sumner M E, Rengasamy P, eds. Australian Sodic Soils: Distribution, Properties and Management. Melbourne: CSIRO, 1–34

[41] Temminghoff E J M, Van der Zee S E A M, De Haan F A M (1997). Copper mobility in a copper-contaminated sandy soil as affected by pH and solid and dissolved organic matter. Environ Sci Technol, 31(4): 1109–1115

[42] Thurman E M (1985). Organic Geochemistry of Natural Waters. Dordrecht: Martinus Nijhoff / Junk Publishers

[43] Weishaar J L, Aiken G R, Bergamaschi B A, Fram M S, Fujii R, Mopper K (2003). Evaluation of specific ultraviolet absorbance as an indicator of the chemical composition and reactivity of dissolved organic carbon. Environ Sci Technol, 37(20): 4702–4708

[44] Wu F C, Midorikawa T, Tanoue E (2001). Fluorescence properties of organic ligands for copper (II) in Lake Biwa and its rivers. Geochem J, 35(5): 333–346

[45] Yamashita Y, Tanoue E (2003). Chemical characterization of protein-like fluorophores in DOM in relation to aromatic amino acids. Mar Chem, 82(3–4): 255–271

[46] Zsolnay A (1996). Dissolved humus in soil waters. In: Piccolo A, ed. Humic Substances in Terrestrial Ecosystems. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science B.V., 171–223

[47] Zsolnay A (2003). Dissolved organic matter: artefacts, definitions, and functions. Geoderma, 113(3–4): 187–209

[48] Zsolnay A, Baigar E, Jimenez M, SteinwegB, SaccomandiF (1999). Differentiating with fluorescence spectroscopy the sources of dissolved organic matter in soils subjected to drying. Chemosphere, 38(1): 45–50

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg