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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Orono, Maine » New England Plant, Soil and Water Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #258098
Title: Fluorescence spectroscopic analysis of organic matter fractions: the current status and a tutorial case study

Author
item OHNO, TSUTOMU - University Of Maine
item He, Zhongqi

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2010
Publication Date: 8/8/2011
Citation: Ohno, T., He, Z. 2011. Fluorescence spectroscopic analysis of organic matter fractions: the current status and a tutorial case study. In: He, Z., editor. Environmental Chemistry of Animal Manure. New York, NY: Nova Science Publishers. p. 83-103.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Incorporation of animal manures into soils is a key nutrient management strategy for sustainable agricultural systems by supplying plant nutrients and maintaining soil quality. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) released from manures affects many soil chemical processes due to its reactivity with soil solution components and soil surfaces. Excitation-emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy combined with parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) has been successful in characterizing the DOM from aquatic and terrestrial sources. This study investigated the use of PARAFAC to characterize six different manure sources and manure-amended soils. In addition, the procedure used is detailed to provide a tutorial for manure researchers who are interested in applying EEM/PARAFAC in their research. Principal component analysis of the concentration scores showed that DOM from soils was very similar, while the manures where very different; indicating that the chemical properties of manures were very source and type dependent. This work supports past research using a variety of chemical analysis which showed the manure samples are high variable. Given this manure variability, EEM/PARAFAC analysis represents a sensitive and quantitative approach to characterize DOM manure chemistry, which represents a significant advance in manure analysis.