Role of humic substances in agriculture and variability of their content in freshwater lake sapropel

ArticleThe term ‘humic substances’ (HS) refers to a general category of naturally occurring, biogenic, heterogeneous organic substances. They create the most widespread natural organic matter found in sediments, soils and waters. Organic carbon in soil (up to 70%) and peat (up to 90%) usually occurs in the form of HS. HS influence the formation process of fossil fuels, as well as they are involved in the plant nutrition process, have an influence on availability and toxicity of metallic and other elements. Furthermore, HS play a significant role in the global carbon geochemical cycle. Properties and application efficiency of humus depend on the source of HS. Freshwater sapropel is a huge reservoir of HS with superior biological activity, although their total content is lower than in peat. The aim of this paper, firstly, was to present the information about the options of HS in agriculture and their main effects on plant growth. Secondly, determination and characterization of HS content in freshwater lake sapropel was performed as sapropel nowadays becomes a popular natural organic-mineral fertilizer and soil conditioner. Sapropel samples were derived from Lake Pilvelis, Lake Pilcines, Lake Vevers, Lake Liducis and Lake Padelis situated in Eastern Latvia. Investigation of HS content in sapropel is significant for the Baltic States and Northern Europe due to wide distribution and availability of sapropel in freshwater bodies. That promotes a search for new ways of extraction methods and bioeconomically effective utilization of this natural resource, obtainable in economically significant amounts, with high opportunities of its use especially in agriculture. Contemporary agriculture strongly desiderates in new products of high effectivity enhancing soil and crop productivity and quality hand in hand with sustainable development and careful attitude to the nature and surrounding environment, thus, one of the ways how it can be achieved is understanding how, where and how much HS preparations can be applied

Strategy of Coniferous Needle Biorefinery into Value-Added Products to Implement Circular Bioeconomy Concepts in Forestry Side Stream Utilization

Sustainable development goals require a reduction in the existing heavy reliance on fossil resources. Forestry can be considered a key resource for the bioeconomy, providing timber, energy, chemicals (including fine chemicals), and various other products. Besides the main product, timber, forestry generates significant amounts of different biomass side streams. Considering the unique and highly complex chemical composition of coniferous needle/greenery biomass, biorefinery strategies can be considered as prospective possibilities to address top segments of the bio-based value pyramid, addressing coniferous biomass side streams as a source of diverse chemical substances with applications as the replacement of fossil material-based chemicals, building blocks, food, and feed and applications as fine chemicals. This study reviews biorefinery methods for coniferous tree forestry biomass side streams, exploring the production of value-added products. Additionally, it discusses the potential for developing further biorefinery strategies to obtain products with enhanced value

Stability of the Broiler Antibody Under Heat Stress Using Dry Rice

This study examines the impact of using dry rice, characterized by low calories and high resistant starch content, on broiler performance under heat stress conditions in Indonesia. Broilers face challenges related to stress, particularly heat stress, which can compromise their immunity. The research investigates the potential of resistant starch in dry rice to enhance broiler digestion performance and immunity. The experiment, conducted at Zakiyah Farm and the Laboratory of the Wates Veterinary Center, Yogyakarta, involved three treatments (T1, T2, and T3) with five replications each. Observed variables included water consumption, carcass weight, Packed Cell Volume (PCV), bursa fabricius weight, and Hi-Test Nd antibody levels. Results showed no significant impact on water consumption, carcass weight, and PCV across all treatments. However, a decrease in bursa weight in T1 and T3 indicated an increased level of stress. The lowest seropositive Hi-Test Nd values in T1 and T3 suggested that the use of dry rice through the sowing method might alleviate heat stress on broilers. In conclusion, this research emphasizes the potential of dry rice to maintain the stability of broiler antibodies under heat stress conditions, emphasizing the need for further exploration of alternative dietary components

Analysis of wood combustion products

The data presented in this dataset are related to the research paper “Granulation of fly ash and biochar with organic lake sediments – A way to sustainable utilization of waste from bioenergy production” [1] in the context of waste material investigation and possible valorization instead of disposal. This article provides a comprehensive chemical and physical characterization of wood combustion products – fly ashes, bottom ashes, mixed ashes and biochar. Multiple analytical techniques and methodology were exploited to investigate the composition of wood combustion products, among them a loss on ignition, potentiometry, colourimetry, X-ray diffractometry, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, gas chromatography. General parameters detected were the content of dry matter, gravimetric water, volatile matter, amount of ash and fixed carbon. The elemental analysis involved determining C, H, N and O. Physical properties were described by bulk density, solid density, total porosity, electric conductivity, specific weight and mass ratio assessment of particle size distribution. The mineralogical composition was described by major crystalline phases of samples and the content of oxides. Chemical properties and composition were characterized by pH, the content of ammonium, nitrates, nitrites, exchangeable elements and cation exchange capacity as well as after the 3-step speciation and analytical quantification of trace and major elements (Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, Sb, Se, Sr, Ti, Tl, V and Zn) and detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Analysis of wood combustion products

The data presented in this dataset are related to the research paper “Granulation of fly ash and biochar with organic lake sediments – A way to sustainable utilization of waste from bioenergy production” [1] in the context of waste material investigation and possible valorization instead of disposal. This article provides a comprehensive chemical and physical characterization of wood combustion products – fly ashes, bottom ashes, mixed ashes and biochar. Multiple analytical techniques and methodology were exploited to investigate the composition of wood combustion products, among them a loss on ignition, potentiometry, colourimetry, X-ray diffractometry, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, gas chromatography. General parameters detected were the content of dry matter, gravimetric water, volatile matter, amount of ash and fixed carbon. The elemental analysis involved determining C, H, N and O. Physical properties were described by bulk density, solid density, total porosity, electric conductivity, specific weight and mass ratio assessment of particle size distribution. The mineralogical composition was described by major crystalline phases of samples and the content of oxides. Chemical properties and composition were characterized by pH, the content of ammonium, nitrates, nitrites, exchangeable elements and cation exchange capacity as well as after the 3-step speciation and analytical quantification of trace and major elements (Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, Sb, Se, Sr, Ti, Tl, V and Zn) and detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Transfer of Metals in Food Chain: An Example with Copper and Lettuce

Present study investigated the possible transfer of metals in the food chain (from soil to edible plants). The experiment was done with lettuce Lactuca sativa grown in different types of soil contaminated with copper (Cu2+) in various concentrations, with or without addition of humic substances. The highest content of copper was detected in lettuce samples grown in soils with lower levels of organic matter, thus indicating the importance of soil organics in metal transfer routes and accumulation rates in plants. It was found that copper accumulation in lettuce grown in contaminated soils can be significantly reduced by the addition of humic substances

Concentration of Elements in Food: How Can It Reflect Impact of Environmental and Other Influencing Factors?

Element content of food is variable and can be influenced by different factors. The aim of the present study was to discover the linkage between macro- and microelement concentrations in food produced in Latvia, and possible impacts of environmental factors. More than 300 fresh food samples such as eggs, cottage cheese, honey, root vegetables, apple juice, apple wine were collected in the time period from 2009 to 2011. Samples were mineralised or analysed directly by appropriate method of quantitative analysis: atomic absorption spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry or total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Statistical analysis of data revealed that food elemental content can be influenced by sitespecific factors such as geographical origin, seasonality, environmental pollution

Trace and Major Elements in Food Articles in Latvia: Root Vegetables

It is known that the content of trace and major elements in plants is dependent on several factors, such as type of species, soil properties, climate conditions, agricultural and agrichemical factors, pollution. The aim of the study was to quantify element content of root vegetables grown in farmlands and allotment gardens in Latvia. Samples of onion bulbs and carrot roots were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Quantitative amounts of 17 trace elements (Ag, As, Ba, Cd, Ce, Co, Cr, Cu, La, Mn, Ni, Pb, Rb, Se, Sr, V, Zn) and 5 major elements (Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Na) were determined. It was detected that carrot roots contained higher amounts of several elements than onion bulbs. Differences in element content of vegetables were also detected between the subgroups of samples grown in farmlands versus samples grown in allotment gardens. Data revealed that onions grown in farmlands were more affected by contaminants