Humic substances and nature-like technologies: Learning from nature: understanding humic substances structures and interactions for the development of environmentally friendly, nature-like technologies

Humic substances (HS) are viewed as an inherent component of soil organic matter, which plays multiple life-sustaining functions in the environment. The complexity of the molecular ensemble of humic substances is reflected in singular physicochemical features and results in uniquely broad and diverse interactions with both abiotic components and living organisms directed towards adaptation of life to its abiotic environment. The reported examples of mediating roles of HS in soil range from the transport of available nutrients in soil solution (Olaetxea et al. 2018) to the remediation of contaminated soils (Perminova and Hatfield 2005). Still, the major problem remains in transferring the molecular engineering of nature into the technology world. This problem gave rise to the topic of the Fourth International Conference on Humic Innovative Technologies (HIT) “From molecular analysis of humic substances - to nature-like technologies,” which was organized by the CIS chapter of the International Humic Substances Society on October 15–20, 2017, in Moscow, Russia (www.humus.ru/hit-2017). The papers presented at that conference formed the basis for this special issue of the Journal of Soils and Sediments.