CAREER: Solving a Global Water Crisis in a Local Watershed: A Comprehensive Analysis of Chitin as a Multifunctional Substrate for the Treatment of Acid Mine Drainage

职业：解决当地流域的全球水危机：几丁质作为多功能底物处理酸性矿井水的综合分析摘要本研究的目的是评估贝类工业产生的废物几丁质作为多功能底物被动处理酸性矿井水（AMD）。该项目不可或缺的是教育和外展的整合。甲壳素是一种有吸引力的底物，因为它具有降低酸度、增加碱度和去除金属的潜力，而且它的可用性和低成本。初始阶段将采用牺牲微观试验，以快速评估几丁质对不同酸度和重金属含量的AMD水体进行修复的能力。为了在项目的整个生命周期中建立一个水化学变化的清单，每个秋季学期，宾夕法尼亚州立大学的学生也将从一个地点收集超出微观世界所需的重复样品集，这些样品集将由即将开发的现场方法课程的学生收集。其中一组将由宾夕法尼亚州立大学的学生进行处理和分析，第二组将在位于宾夕法尼亚州比奇溪流域的合作高中进行简化分析，这将是采样地点的位置。第二阶段将包括柱状研究，将进行量化硫酸盐还原率，金属去除能力，底物寿命，以及当几丁质用作AMD治疗屏障材料时微生物群落的发展和分布。吸附等温线将用于评价甲壳素对金属的吸收能力。比较宏基因组学将用于比较屏障上游、屏障多点内和屏障下游的生物种群，并将其与化学条件和治疗效果相关联。研究生将在PI的实验室进行实验室研究。在最后阶段，在美国比奇溪流域协会的帮助下，在宾夕法尼亚州比奇溪流域的一个地点进行了几丁质屏障治疗AMD的现场演示。水化学的实验室和清单将为现场演示的设计和地点提供信息。项目安装的劳动力将由PI实验室的研究生、实地方法班的学生、外展计划的高中生和山毛榉溪流域协会的志愿者成员提供。项目完成后，只要资源允许，PI实验室将继续监测该系统，并将其用作AMD治疗的实际实验站。该课程将通过在秋季学期每周提供1小时的课堂教学和3小时的现场实验来满足宾夕法尼亚州立大学对修复设计现场方法课程的需求，并将涵盖评估地表和地下水系统健康所需的主题（包括流速测量、沉积物采样、水质采样、基本水化学测试、无脊椎动物采样、鱼类识别和栖息地评估）。此外，学生将学习构建被动AMD处理系统的基本设计原则，并为流域中的一条AMD小溪设计自己的系统。在整个项目期间的每个秋季学期，来自比奇溪流域一所高中的11年级学生和一名老师将与宾夕法尼亚州立大学的学生一起参加两个实地课堂实验。每年，一名高中生将有机会在PI的实验室进行为期8周的暑期实习，继续学习AMD的研究和现场方法。

Brennan, Rachel A.Pennsylvania State University-University Park0644983CAREER: Solving a Global Water Crisis in a Local Watershed: A Comprehensive Analysis of Chitin as a Multifunctional Substrate for the Treatment of Acid Mine DrainageABSTRACTThe purpose of this research is to evaluate chitin, a waste product from the shellfish industry, as a multifunctional substrate for passive treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD). Integral to the project is the integration of education and outreach. Chitin is an attractive substrate because of its potential to decrease acidity, increase alkalinity, and remove metals and its availability and low costs. Sacrificial microcosm tests will be used in the initial stage to rapidly assess the ability of chitin to achieve remediation of AMD waters of varying acidity and heavy metals contents. To develop an inventory of water chemistry changes throughout the life of the project, duplicate sets of samples beyond what is required for the microcosms will also be collected from one site each fall semester by Penn State students enrolled in the field methods course that will be developed. One set will be processed and analyzed by the Penn State students and the second set will be subject to a simplified set of analyses in partner high schools located in the Beech Creek, PA, watershed, which will be the location of the sampling sites. The second stage will consist of column studies that will be conducted to quantify sulfate reduction rates, metal removal capacities, substrate longevity, and the development and distribution of the microbial community when chitin is used as a barrier material for AMD treatment. Sorption isotherms will be used to evaluate the capacity of chitin for metal uptake. Comparative metagenomics will be used to compare the populations of organisms upstream, within the multiple points of the barrier, and downstream of the barrier and correlate that to chemical conditions and the effectiveness of treatment. Graduate students in the PI's lab will conduct the laboratory studies. In the last stage a field demonstration of a chitin barrier for the treatment of AMD at a site in the Beech Creek Watershed, PA, with the aid of the Beech Creek Watershed Association. The laboratory and inventory of water chemistry will inform the design and location of the field demonstration. Labor for the project installation will be provided by the graduate students in the PI's laboratory, students in the field methods class, high school students in the outreach program, and volunteer members of the Beech Creek Watershed Association. After the completion of the project, the system would continue to be monitored and used as a hands-on experimental station for AMD treatment by the PI's laboratory for as long as resources allow.The course to be developed will fill the need at Penn State for a field methods class for remediation design by offering 1-hour of classroom instruction and 3-hours of field laboratory each week of the fall semester, and will cover the topics necessary to evaluate the health of surface and groundwater systems (including stream velocity measurements, sediment sampling, water quality sampling, basic water chemistry testing, invertebrate sampling, fish identification, and habitat assessment). In addition, students will learn basic design principles for constructing passive AMD treatment systems, and design their own system for one of the AMD creeks in the watershed. Every fall semester throughout the duration of the project, grade 11 students and a teacher from one of the high schools in the Beech Creek Watershed will pair with Penn State students to participate in two of the field class laboratories. Each year, one high school student will have the opportunity to continue learning about AMD research and field methods during an 8-week Summer Internship in the PI's laboratory.