Ecophysiology of Nitrifying and Denitrifying Microbial Communities and their Interactions in Microbial Flocs

微生物絮凝体是复杂的微生物群落，对各种自然过程和工程应用具有重要意义。絮团微环境中微生物的生理生态最终决定了哪些微生物在特定条件下存在、活跃和占主导地位。本研究将采用多学科方法来描述控制氮转化絮凝体群落结构和功能的因素。该项目的具体目标是：(1)确定微观絮凝体结构（大小和形状）对微生物活动速率和多样性的影响，建立絮凝体内参与脱氮的微生物的多样性、相对数量和空间排列；(2)确定生物反应器宏观条件（DO、底物类型和负载）对絮团大小、形状和功能的影响；(3)研究絮凝体内氨氧化菌、亚硝酸盐氧化菌和反硝化菌之间的碳基和氮基代谢相互作用；(4)建立包含絮凝体微尺度过程的活性污泥脱氮脱碳宏观模型。

0348392 de los Reyes Microbial flocs are complex microbial communities that are of fundamental importance to a wide variety of natural processes and engineered applications. The ecophysiology of microorganisms in floc microenvironments ultimately determines which organisms are present, active, and dominant under specific conditions. The research described in this proposal will apply a multidisciplinary approach to characterize the factors that control community structure and function in nitrogen-transforming flocs. The specific objectives of the project are: (1) To determine the effect of microscopic floc structure (size and shape) on rates and diversity of microbial activities and to establish the diversity, the relative numbers and spatial arrangement of microorganisms involved in nitrogen removal within flocs; (2) To determine the impact of bioreactor macro conditions (DO, substrate type and loading) on floc size, shape, and function; (3) To characterize the carbon- and nitrogen-based metabolic interactions among ammonia-oxidizing, nitrite-oxidizing, and denitrifying bacteria within a floc; and (4) To develop a macroscale model of nitrogen and carbon removal in activated sludge that incorporates microscale processes in flocs.