Electrochemical and spectroscopic studies of the complexed species of models of nitrohumic acids derived from phthalic acid

Abstract

The study of model compounds is necessary in order to obtain information about complex organic substances as in the case of humic substances (HS). These substances are potential organic fertilizers and have other important functions in soils, natural waters and organic sediments. The main chemical properties of the complexes formed from 3-nitrophthalic and 4-nitrophthalic acids and the metal ions Fe(III) and Zn(II) were studied using potentiometric titrations, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). A trial potentiometric titration was done with a mixture of the models for nitrohumic acids and Cu(II). Equilibrium constants for the systems were calculated and UV-Vis and CV were employed to monitor the formation of the species. Comparative studies involving chelating centres of nitrosalicylic acids and nitrocatechols with Fe(III), Zn(II) and Cu(II) are presented. The initial studies involving the nitrohumic substances (NHS), a laboratory artifact of HS have been made and good evidence was found for the further use of NHS as a potential organic fertilizer as well as HS. In this present work one of the observed advantages of NHS over HS was that some aromatic nitro- centres can bind some metal ions at p[H] values of normal soils, near 7.0 to 7.5.

Keywords

• metal complex
• humic substances
• potentiometric titration
• cyclic voltammogram
• speciation
• organic fertilizer