HYPOHALITE OXIDATION OF HUMIC ACIDS

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Abstract
Humic acids from the A1 horizon of a Chernozem black soil and from a weathered medium volatile bituminous coal were treated with a selective oxidant, namely sodium hypochlorite solution. Over 50 percent of the total carbon in both the humic acids appeared as CO2. Coal humic acid furnished predominantly benzene carboxylic acids, while the soil humic acid yielded a high proportion of aliphatic mono-, di-, and tricarboxylic acids. A good carbon balance indicates the complete oxidation of both the humic acids.Proceeding from the known chemistry of hypohalite oxidation, it is concluded that soil humic acids represent a special group of mixed alkyl-aryl-cycloalkyl compounds in which Sp2 carbon represents over 80 percent of the total carbon. If such humic acids are accepted as precursors of coal formation, the present study indicates that “maturation” converts the cyclo-alkyl skeletal arrangements of the component molecules from a normal bicyclo- or hydro-aromatic system to a bridged tricyclo- or more complex system at the expense of longer alkyl chains. Humic acids from the A1 horizon of a Chernozem black soil and from a weathered medium volatile bituminous coal were treated with a selective oxidant, namely sodium hypochlorite solution. Over 50 percent of the total carbon in both the humic acids appeared as CO2. Coal humic acid furnished predominantly benzene carboxylic acids, while the soil humic acid yielded a high proportion of aliphatic mono-, di-, and tricarboxylic acids. A good carbon balance indicates the complete oxidation of both the humic acids. Proceeding from the known chemistry of hypohalite oxidation, it is concluded that soil humic acids represent a special group of mixed alkyl-aryl-cycloalkyl compounds in which Sp2 carbon represents over 80 percent of the total carbon. If such humic acids are accepted as precursors of coal formation, the present study indicates that “maturation” converts the cyclo-alkyl skeletal arrangements of the component molecules from a normal bicyclo- or hydro-aromatic system to a bridged tricyclo- or more complex system at the expense of longer alkyl chains. © Williams & Wilkins 1974. All Rights Reserved.

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