Exploring the impact of fulvic acid and humic acid on heavy metal availability to alfalfa in molybdenum contaminated soil

Humic substances, such as Fulvic acid (FA) and humic acid (HA), are widely used for the remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soils due to their ability to enhance metal mobility and facilitate plant uptake. In this study, we conducted a pot experiment with alfalfa to investigate the effects of FA and HA amendments on the mobility of molybdenum (Mo) in the soil, its uptake by alfalfa plants, and subsequent changes in the microbial community. The results demonstrated that both FA and HA influence Mo accumulation in the soil and plants. Specifically, HA treatment increased Mo concentrations in alfalfa shoots and roots by 1.08-1.19 times and 1.19-2.43 times, respectively, compared to the control. In contrast, FA enhanced Mo concentrations in alfalfa roots (1.05-1.58 times) but reduced Mo levels in the shoots (0.78-0.85 times). Furthermore, the addition of FA and HA altered the chemical speciation of Mo in the soil, promoting the conversion of reducible and oxidizable fraction to more exchangeable and residual fraction. As a result, the proportion of non-residual Mo fractions (exchangeable, reducible, and oxidizable) decreased from 87.48% to 80.30-87.35%, while residual fractions increased from 12.52% to 12.65-19.70%. Additionally, the structure of the soil bacterial community was primarily influenced by changes in soil properties such as cation exchange capacity, available phosphorus, and ammonium nitrogen levels. This finding highlight the potential of FA and HA to enhance Mo availability, uptake, and translocation in alfalfa, suggesting that their application could be an effective strategy for phytoremediation of Mo-contaminated soils, particularly when alfalfa is used as a hyperaccumulator.