Isolation and characterization of soil fulvic acid

Fulvic acid was isolated from the agriculture soil of district naushahro feroz, pakistan by international Humic substances society (IHSS) method. The nutrient of the soil like K, Ca, Na, Fe and and Zn were determined by using the atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The spectroscopic analysis was carried out by studying the VU-Vis, FT-IR and NIR spectra of isolated compounds. The data has been compared with the literature and correlated. Moisture as well as texture shows good water holding capacity and silt-loam type of soil. pH and EC are indicators of the fertility of soil to be beneficial for plantation. The spectral data (VU -Visible FTIR and NIR) supports the characteristic functional groups (-COOH, C=O, -OH, -NH/sub 2/, C=C, CH/sub 2/ and polyaccharides) present in fulvic acid. E/sub 4/E/sub 6/ values depict its hydrophilic nature having less aromatic and more aliphatic groups. The presence of metal ions indicates its chelating ability. (author)