Influence of phosphate ions on buffer capacity of soil humic acids

The object of this study was to determine change of natural buffer capacity of humic acids by strong buffering agents, which were phosphate ions. Studies were carried out on the humic acids extracted from peat soils. Additional information was obtained by determination of water holding capacity, density, ash and pH for peats and optical parameter Q4/6 for humic acids. Humic acid suspensions exhibited the highest buffer properties at low pH and reached maximum at pH ~ 4. Phosphates possessed buffer properties in the pH range from 4.5 to 8.0. The maximum of buffering was at pH~6.8 and increased proportionally with an increase in the concentration of phosphate ions. The study indicated that the presence of phosphate ions may strongly change natural buffer capacity of humic acids by shifting buffering maximum toward higher pH values. Significant correlations were found for the degree of the secondary transformation with both the buffer capacity and the titrant volume used during titration.