Three humic and one fulvic acid were degraded by mild chemical oxidation with peracetic acid, with special emphasis on the effects of this type of oxidation on N-containing components. The different types of N that were considered were NH4+-N, amino acid-N, amino sugar-N, NO2−-N + NO3−-N, and by difference from total N, "unknown" N. The behaviour toward mild chemical oxidation of all four preparations was essentially similar: there were decreases in mino acid-N, amino sugar-N and "unknown" N, increases in NH4+-N, NO2−-N + NO3−-N with one material, and in N-gases. The "unknown" N was not inert. Between 16.6 and 59.1% of the latter appeared to be converted, as a result of mild chemical oxidation, to NH3 and N-gases which were expelled from the systems. The results presented provide an insight into what happens to N-containing humic components as a result of mild oxidation.
PERACETIC ACID OXIDATION OF HALOGENATED AZOBENZENES