Humic substances, the remarkable brown biomaterials in animals, coals, plants, sediments, soils and waters, are crucial components of the carbon cycle and other life processes. Thus greater knowledge and understanding of these versatile materials is of great importance to the productivity, health and safety of the world's ecosystems, humans, land and water. Presenting the best and most recent research in this important area, this book focuses on the molecular and chemical aspects of humic substances, with sophisticated analytical, chemical and physical techniques providing vital information. Areas covered include spectroscopy, modelling, mobility, properties and analysis of humic substances. Humic Substances: Structures, Models and Functions will be welcomed by researchers and professionals in academia, industry and government agencies worldwide, particularly where the science of humic substances finds applications, such as environmental remediation and sustainable agriculture.

The properties of humic substances (HSs) in plants, soils and sediments regulate the environment and affect all aspects of like, yet they are only very imprecisely understood. This volume presents work on HSs including new instruments and techniques being developed to throw more light on their structure and relationship to macro- and micro-scopic properties.