Chemical characteristics and potential source of fulvic acids leached from the plow layer of paddy soil

Abstract

To understand better the chemical characteristics and source of dissolved organic matter (DOM) leached from the plow layer of rice paddies, a lysimeter study was conducted, which simulated submerged paddy topsoil during rice growth. The fulvic acid (FA) fraction in the percolation water from the lysimeter was collected by adsorption onto insoluble polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), and the temporal variations in its elemental composition, molecular size distribution, IR spectra, 13C CPMAS NMR spectra, and δ 13C values were investigated. The proportion of the FA fraction to bulk DOM varied greatly, but the chemical characteristics of the FA fraction did not change appreciably during the experimental period. Thus, it is considered that the changes in the DOM composition in percolation water were mainly due to the differing contributions of the FA fraction. Further, to investigate the source of the FA fraction in the leachate, the chemical characteristics of the FA fraction in the leachate were compared with those extracted from the plow layer soil. A sequential extraction of the FA fraction was conducted using a sequence of water, 0.25 M Na 2SO 4, 0.1 M Na 4P 2O 7 (pH 7.0), 0.1 M Na 4P 2O 7 (pH 10.5), and NaBH 4+0.1 M Na 4P 2O 7 (pH 10.5). It was found that the water- and 0.25 M Na 2SO 4-extractable fractions, which were most mobile, were not the only source of the FA fraction in the leachate. The small molecular size sub-fraction of the NaBH 4+0.1 M Na 4P 2O 7 (pH 10.5)-extractable FAs, most of which are probably bound mainly to iron oxides, are considered to be another source of the FA fraction leached from the plow layer of paddy fields.