Collaborative Research: Engineering biofilm-electrode for organic contaminant degradation

合作研究：用于有机污染物降解的工程生物膜电极

• 批准号: 1917074
• 负责人: David Sanchez
• 金额: $ 21万
• 依托单位: University of Pittsburgh
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-09-01 至 2023-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1917074&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Engineering; biofilm; electrode

Chemicals used in commonly-used consumer items can contaminate water and pose a threat to human and ecosystem health. It is critical for society to prevent these impacts by developing effective technologies to remove these chemicals. Two promising approaches include the use of engineered biofilms (microbial aggregates growing on surfaces) and electrochemical treatment. This project is a new approach combining biofilm engineering with bioelectrochemical degradation for sustainable treatment of chemical pollutants. The focus is on engineering carbon electrodes and biofilms to degrade the contaminant bisphenol A. Results will impact other fields such as microbial electrosynthesis, biosensors, infection control, and bioelectronics. The project will train underrepresented students to participate in undergraduate research at the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Pittsburgh. Twenty middle school teachers will participate in a teacher science program. Middle school students will be hosted at the Energy Inventor Labs in Pittsburgh and the Science Camp and Research Day programs in Chicago. Together, these efforts will impact over 2,000 students to broaden participation in STEM and increase the scientific literacy of the Nation.Bioelectrochemical systems for the degradation of emerging organic contaminants such as bisphenol A depend on a high level of biofilm control. Sustainable operation requires that conditions on the electrode surface promote the development of biofilms adapted to the suite of contaminants to be oxidized. The goal of this project is to achieve this objective by identifying and tuning the optimal carbon electrode morphology for biofilm-electrode formation for optimal organic waste decomposition. Biofilm formation and organic compound degradation via increased electron transfer are often governed by electrode morphology and biofilm-electrode interactions. We will investigate the effects of electrode morphology on biofilm-electrode performance by connecting the physical and electrochemical properties of different carbon electrodes for robust and conductive biofilm formation, optimizing biofilm-electrode performance via microbial engineering, and integrating biological degradation pathways of organic contaminants into the bioelectrochemical systems. This project will provide a novel understanding of biofilm-electrode interactions by studying electrode morphology and microbial engineering simultaneously, which should lead to a new design framework for bioelectrochemical systems. The project will have an extensive education and outreach program of undergraduate research, K-12 teacher training, and middle school student science programs in Pittsburgh and Chicago. Together, these efforts will impact over 2,000 students to broaden participation in STEM and increase the scientific literacy of the Nation.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

常用消费品中使用的化学品可能会污染水并对人类和生态系统健康构成威胁。对于社会来说，通过开发有效的技术来去除这些化学物质来防止这些影响至关重要。两种有前景的方法包括使用工程生物膜（在表面生长的微生物聚集体）和电化学处理。该项目是一种将生物膜工程与生物电化学降解相结合的化学污染物可持续处理的新方法。重点是设计碳电极和生物膜来降解污染物双酚 A。结果将影响微生物电合成、生物传感器、感染控制和生物电子学等其他领域。该项目将培训代表性不足的学生参与伊利诺伊理工学院和匹兹堡大学的本科生研究。二十名中学教师将参加教师科学计划。中学生将在匹兹堡的能源发明家实验室和芝加哥的科学营和研究日项目中进行接待。这些努力将共同影响 2,000 多名学生，以扩大对 STEM 的参与并提高国家的科学素养。用于降解双酚 A 等新兴有机污染物的生物电化学系统取决于高水平的生物膜控制。可持续运行要求电极表面的条件促进适应待氧化污染物的生物膜的形成。该项目的目标是通过确定和调整生物膜电极形成的最佳碳电极形态以实现最佳有机废物分解来实现这一目标。通过增加电子转移而形成的生物膜和有机化合物的降解通常受电极形态和生物膜-电极相互作用的控制。我们将研究电极形态对生物膜电极性能的影响，通过连接不同碳电极的物理和电化学特性以形成坚固且导电的生物膜，通过微生物工程优化生物膜电极性能，并将有机污染物的生物降解途径整合到生物膜电极中。生物电化学系统。该项目将通过同时研究电极形态和微生物工程，提供对生物膜-电极相互作用的新理解，这将为生物电化学系统带来新的设计框架。该项目将在匹兹堡和芝加哥开展广泛的教育和推广项目，包括本科生研究、K-12 教师培训以及中学生科学项目。这些努力将共同影响 2,000 多名学生，以扩大对 STEM 的参与并提高国家的科学素养。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。