Binding of Cu, Co, and Cs to fluorescent components of natural organic matter (NOM) from three contrasting sites.

Aqueous natural organic matter (NOM) contains different types of functional groups (carboxylic, phenolic, sulfidic, etc.), and hence could change the speciation of metals in environmental systems. This work is a proof-of-concept study on the interaction of three metals (Cu, Co, and Cs) with NOM using fluorescence spectroscopy.