Abstract Background The use of carbonaceous materials for environmental remediation is attractive due to low expense and high sorption capacity. However, their efficiency in contaminant removal is affected by substrate composition and sorption mechanism. Objective This study investigated atrazine sorption and desorption in three carbon-rich substrates. Data were evaluated considering isotherm models and sorbent chemical composition. Methods Sorption was performed by the batch equilibrium method with three substrates obtained from pig slurry composting with different proportions (w/w) of charcoal fines (CF): CF0, CF9 (9% CF), and CF18 (18% CF). The substrates were characterized by elemental analysis, 13C NMR CP/MAS spectroscopy. The Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich (DRK) models better fitted the sorption data (0.96>R2>0.81), followed by Temkin (0.95>R2>0.76). Charcoal addition to composting substrates increased carbon content and the aromaticity in the order CF0<CF9< CF18. However, the sorption affinity decreased in the opposite order as indicated by the Kf values: 675, 335 and 290 L kg-1, respectively. Values of the E parameter (DRK) varied from 8.05 to 8.29 kJ mol-1, suggesting a predominant physical sorption mechanism, whereas the Bt coefficient (Temkin) indicated an endothermic process. Desorption was only observed at higher atrazine concentrations (>10 mg L-1), and the desorption Kf values were greater than the respective sorption values. Conclusions Atrazine sorption in the tested C-rich substrates is not governed by the carbon content or aromaticity. The low sorption reversibility implies a low atrazine mobility from the tested substrates and suggests their potential for herbicide removal in the environment.

RESUMO As substâncias húmicas (SH) têm se mostrado eficazes em incrementar a produtividade de hortaliças. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de bioestimulantes comerciais ricos em ácidos húmicos (AH) e fúlvicos (AF), obtidos de leonardita, na eficiência agronômica da cultura de alface e teor de nutrientes na planta. Foi realizado um experimento em casa-de-vegetação em vasos de 2,5 L com amostras de Argissolo, aos quais foram aplicados bioestimulantes comerciais ricos em AH e em AF, isoladamente e em combinação com o fertilizante mineral NPK. A aplicação dos bioestimulantes à base de SH associada à fertilização mineral na cultura da alface apresentou os maiores valores das variáveis estudadas: altura e diâmetro de plantas, número de folhas por planta e comprimento de raiz. A combinação do bioestimulante rico em AF e o fertilizante mineral aumentou a produção da alface em relação à aplicação isolada do fertilizante inorgânico. A aplicação combinada dos bioestimulantes ricos em AF e em AH com o fertilizante NPK influenciou a absorção de K e Fe pelas plantas, e seu acúmulo na parte aérea. Nossos resultados sugerem que as SH potencializam o efeito nutricional do fertilizante mineral, quando aplicadas conjuntamente.

ABSTRACT Humic substances (HS) have proved to be effective in improving the productivity of vegetable crops. We examined the effect of commercial biostimulants rich in humic (HA) and fulvic acids (FA) obtained from leonardite on agronomic efficiency and nutrient content in the leaves of lettuce (Lactuca sativa). A greenhouse experiment was carried out employing 2.5-L pots containing Ultisol samples that were supplied with commercial biostimulants rich in HA and FA, alone and in combination with NPK mineral fertilizer. The application of HS biostimulants associated to mineral fertilization to the lettuce plants provided the greatest values of the studied variables, namely: plant height and diameter, leaf number per plant and root length. The combination of FA biostimulants and mineral fertilization increased the lettuce productivity relative to the inorganic fertilizer alone. The combined application of rich biostimulants FA and HA with NPK fertilizes influenced K and Fe uptake by the plants, and their accumulation in the aerial portion. Our results suggest that HS products potentialize the nutritional effect of the mineral fertilizer, when applied in combination.

The goal of this study was to investigate the effect of composted pig slurry (PS) on the organic matter concentration and distribution of humic acid (HA), fulvic acid (FA) and humin (HU) fractions. The fractions were quantified following the addition of composted PS to the soil, which was produced with no acidification (T2) or with acidification with H3PO4 (T3); and in soil without compost addition (T1). The HA chemical composition was analyzed by FTIR spectroscopy. The addition of the two composts did not change the soil carbon concentration but affected the distribution of the humic fractions. For the three treatments, the carbon concentration of humic substances increased until 52 days following compost addition, with more pronounced increases with the addition of non-acidified PS compost (14.5 g kg-1) and acidified PS compost (15.1 g kg-1). This increase was reflected in both the FA and HA concentrations. The addition of compost with PS acidification resulted in the formation of larger humic micelles (HA) with higher aromatic content and fewer functional groups than the non-acidified PS compost. These findings, together with a lower proportion of carbohydrate-type structures, indicated the presence of more stable humic micelles in the soil treated with acidified PS compost.