CAREER: Advancement of Microalgal Biotechnology via Quantitative Sustainable Design: An Integrated Research and Education Plan

PI：Guest，JeremyProposal编号：1351667机构：伊利诺伊大学香槟分校题目：职业：通过定量可持续设计推进微藻生物技术：综合研究和教育计划这个项目将通过整合实验、建模和定量可持续设计(QSD)来推进微藻生物技术的前沿，并将利用这一框架来改善环境工程领域不同学生群体的教育和留住。研究将致力于从含有微藻的废水中回收能量正向的营养物质，并将重点放在克服关键的知识差距上，这些差距限制了我们设计混合群落微藻生物过程的能力，这些过程可能会使这一转变触手可及。这项研究的目标是(I)阐明微藻生物过程在各种可能的设计景观中的作用机制，以及(Ii)建立一条从废水中回收能量正养分(氮和磷)的前进路径。微藻处理废水混合群落的实验将与建模相结合，以促进对关键设计参数如何影响工艺性能、微生物群落结构和功能的理解。这些发现将被整合到QSD框架中(包括生命周期评估、生命周期成本计算、敏感性和不确定性分析)，以确定技术目标并规划微藻废水生物技术发展的前进道路。研究努力将与教育计划相结合，该教育计划旨在(I)通过一个有抱负的资源管理框架，提高少数族裔和女性学生在初级和高级环境工程课程中的内在动机，以及(Ii)提高对工程系统环境、经济和性能可持续性标准之间权衡的认识和能力。这些目标将通过开发两个在线课程模块来实现，这些模块将在加州大学伯克内尔分校、巴克内尔大学和帕克兰学院设计、测试和部署。模块将通过认知实验室设计，并将包括外部、独立的形成性和总结性评估。目前污水处理厂(WWTP)的养分管理方法使用昂贵的能源密集型过程，依赖细菌和化学物质来去除氮和磷。这项研究将通过利用本地微藻进行能量正向生物养分恢复来重新设想污水处理厂的养分管理。除了将废水的固有化学能提高两倍以上，这种方法还可以克服溶解有机氮的关键障碍，从而突破技术限制。溶解有机氮是一种形式的氮，通常无法通过现有的营养去除过程去除，但可以迅速被微藻同化。该研究计划的核心概念是通过实验、建模和QSD的集成来加快微藻技术的开发。这一综合过程将阐明系统规模可持续性的分子级障碍，并寻求通过过程设计来克服这些障碍。这种方法将能够为技术绩效设定目标，并确定未来研究的关键领域，以实现长期采用和可持续发展。研究活动将与教育活动相结合，通过关注环境工程的理想成果和开发可持续设计教育的新平台，增加对未被充分代表的学生的吸引和留住。

PI: Guest, JeremyProposal Number: 1351667Institution: University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignTitle: CAREER: Advancement of Microalgal Biotechnology via Quantitative Sustainable Design: An Integrated Research and Education PlanThis project will advance the frontier of microalgal biotechnology through the integration of experimentation, modeling, and quantitative sustainable design (QSD), and will leverage this framework to improve the education and retention of a diverse student body in environmental engineering. Research will pursue energy-positive nutrient recovery from wastewater with microalgae, and will focus on overcoming critical knowledge gaps that limit our ability to design mixed community microalgal bioprocesses that might bring this transformation within reach. Objectives of the research are (i) to elucidate the mechanisms governing microalgal bioprocess performance across a landscape of possible designs, and (ii) to establish a path forward for energy positive nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) recovery from wastewater. Experiments with mixed communities of microalgae treating wastewater will be coupled with modeling to advance understanding of how key design parameters influence process performance, microbial community structure and function. These findings will be integrated in a QSD framework (including life cycle assessment, life cycle costing, sensitivity and uncertainty analyses) to identify technology targets and chart a path forward for microalgal wastewater biotechnology development.Research efforts will be integrated with an education plan designed (i) to increase the intrinsic motivation of minority and female students in introductory- and advanced-level environmental engineering courses through an aspirational resource management framework, and (ii) to increase awareness of and ability to navigate trade-offs among environmental, economic, and performance sustainability criteria for engineered systems. These goals will be achieved by developing two online course modules that will be designed, tested, and deployed at UIUC, Bucknell University, and Parkland College. Modules will be designed through cognitive labs and will include external, independent formative and summative evaluations.Current approaches to nutrient management at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) use costly, energy-intensive processes that rely on bacteria and chemicals to remove nitrogen and phosphorus. This research will re-envision nutrient management at WWTPs by utilizing native microalgae for energy-positive biological nutrient recovery. In addition to increasing the embodied chemical energy of wastewater more than 2-fold, this approach may also advance the limit of technology by overcoming the critical barrier of dissolved organic nitrogen, a form of N that is often unable to be removed by existing nutrient removal processes but which can be rapidly assimilated by microalgae. The core concept of the research plan is microalgal technology development can be expedited through integration of experimentation, modeling, and QSD. This integrated process will elucidate molecular-scale barriers to systems-scale sustainability and seek to overcome them through process design. This approach will enable the setting of targets for technology performance, and identify critical areas for future research to achieve long-term adoption and sustainability. The research activities will be coupled with educational activities to increase the attraction and retention of underrepresented students by focusing on aspirational outcomes of environmental engineering and developing a new platform for education in sustainable design.