Microorganisms humic substance formation

The rate of cadaver decomposition in soil can be affected by how often a particular site is subjected to cadaveric material. Microbial degradation is typically described as having three phases. The initial lag phase is defined by microbial or enzymatic enrichment. During the second phase the substrate is rapidly degraded. This is followed by a declining phase that results from a lack of readily available substrate or formation of humic substances (Ajwa and Tabatabai 1994). Forensic taphonomy holds that the burial of a number of cadavers in soil over time will result in an increased number of soil microorganisms (Janaway 1996). Experiments using controlled burial environment... 

Interactions of soil minerals with organic matter and microorganisms exert a vital role in the formation of short-range-ordered metal oxides, humic substances, mineral colloid-humic complexes, aggregates, and the structure and porosity of soils. These nonliving and living reactive components and the structural stability... 

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