Soil organic matter (SOM) is the largest reservoir of organic carbon at the earth's surface. Its chemistry plays a crucial role in a wide range of issues including agricultural sustainability, pollution/contamination, and medicine. For instance, SOM is vital to soil fertility by affecting physical and chemical properties of soil and in controlling soil microbial activity by serving as a source for mineralizable C and N. Soil organic matter is also very influential in the transport and fate of organic and inorganic anthropogenic chemicals because of its heterogeneity and highly functionalized nature. Therefore, an understanding of SOM at the molecular level is a critical and worthwhile undertaking.

This handbook is a reference guide for selecting and carrying out numerous methods of soil analysis. It is written in accordance with analytical standards and quality control approaches. It covers a large body of technical information including protocols, tables, formulae, spectrum models, chromatograms and additional analytical diagrams. The approaches are diverse, from the simplest tests to the most sophisticated determination methods.

Written by distinguished researchers, the long-running Chemistry and Physics of Carbon series provides a comprehensive and critical overview of carbon materials in terms of molecular structure, intermolecular relationships, bulk and surface properties, and their behavior in current and emerging applications. Volume 31 not only retains the high-quality content and reputation of previous volumes, but also complements them with reliable and timely coverage of the latest advances in the field. Maintaining the high level established by its predecessors, this book contains a prestigious and authoritative series of review chapters covering both chemistry and physics of carbon. The book examines properties and behavior of carbon materials ranging from coal to graphite, from activated carbons, chars, cokes, and carbon blacks to carbon fibers, fullerenes, nanotubes, and graphene. It complements previous volumes in the series by presenting updated information on ‘disordered’ carbons, a complex field that impacts nearly all aspects of carbon materials research. It includes a chapter on novel methods of characterization of carbon materials using ever more powerful techniques, as well as a chapter on the use of carbon materials in photocatalysis, a fast-moving and potentially exciting application. Emphasizing key experimental results and practical aspects, as well as important theoretical issues in every chapter, Volume 31 is a vital resource for those engaged in developing new technologies in a wide range of applicability of traditional and novel carbon materials from drug delivery to energy storage and conversion.

Refractory organic substances (ROS) are an essential part of the biogeochemical carbon cycle. Wherever there is life on earth, there will also be ROS in the form of poorly biodegradable leftovers of organisms and as a source for new life. Furthermore, it is now beyond doubt that ROS are closely related to the carbon intensity identified as one of the driving forces in the dynamics of green house gas emission, such that ROS play a key role in sustainable development. 'Refractory Organic Substances in the Environment' provides the results of six years of top-priority research, funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). This research program investigated the structure and function of ROS in different parts of the environment, from a chemical, physical, biological, and soil scientific point of view. It included the first systematic study of a set of reference samples from Central Europe, originating from a bog lake, soil seepage water, groundwater, and from the wastewaters of a brown coal processing plant and a secondary effluent. Thus, this work not only highlights the structural features obtained from the application of advanced analytical tools, but also the function in anthropogenically influenced aquatic systems and soils. Of special interest to students and researchers in life sciences.

This book demonstrates the usefulness of NMR spectroscopy for a wide variety of applications in environmental science and technology. It contains a wealth of information relating to instrumentation, sample preparation, and data interpretation. The book is divided into three sectionsdiscussing contaminant interaction, solution and condensed-phase characterization, and nutrients and natural organic matter characterization. In addition to these in-depth chapters, an introductory overview provides the basic principles of solution and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. Each sectionalso contains a discussion of advances in each area directly attributable to NMR spectroscopy. A final chapter suggests future directions for the deployment of this powerful technology in environmental science.

This informative publication presents the broad application of nuclear magnetic resonance to many of today's problem areas in agriculture. Solid-state NMR methodology is covered, with its applications to the study of intact agricultural matrices such as plant cell walls, photosynthetic chloroplast membranes, forages, wood cellulose, and soils. In vivo solution NMR methodology and its applications to the study of different functioning plant tissues and their biochemical responses to various pathological, physiological, and toxicological stresses are illustrated with examples using 31P, 13C, 23Na, and 15N resonance methods. An introductory chapter presents a review of the in vivo literature and some basic principles and requirements for carrying out such experiments. A special section focuses on state-of-the-art 13C and 1H high-resolution multidimensional methods and their application to the study of agricultural toxins; biologically active components, including their structures and biosyntheses, and dynamic measurements of relaxation phenomena associated with cross relaxation in water bound to food proteins.