CAREER: Fundamental Studies of Cross-Kingdom Aggregate Biofilms for Energy-Efficient Wastewater Treatment

1452613巴特勒职业生涯：跨王国聚集生物膜的基础研究，为节能废水处理废水处理正变得越来越能源密集型的处理要求变得更加严格。被称为藻类污泥颗粒处理的过程使用较大的颗粒，这些颗粒可以从废水中分离出来，并且由于它们的尺寸，更容易沉降。拟议的过程将占用一个较小的处理足迹比许多藻类为基础的废水处理系统，并有可能被用作生物能源原料。这一过程的优点使其成为一种强制性的二级处理方法。然而，这一新的过程仍处于发展的早期阶段，需要更多的知识来了解这些跨王国颗粒生物膜的聚集和功能。PI将与克拉克听力和言语学校的一名教师合作，利用藻类污泥颗粒的高度视觉化成分来教授质量平衡，环境污染以及水和废水处理的概念，从而在听力受损的学生中建立技术素养。在赠款期间，每年多达60名本科生（共300名）可以参加新的基于项目的学习，500多名听障学生有可能接触环境工程课程。这项拟议的研究将证明：1）初始颗粒化的机制，2）不同颗粒形态的结构完整性以及物理特性如何与性能和微生物生态学相关，以及3）在应力条件下藻类污泥颗粒的弹性。在发现藻类污泥颗粒之前，在处理系统中使用微藻和细菌培养的颗粒是前所未有的。在环境中很少观察到大颗粒的光养生物和细菌。本研究是对真核生物和原核生物通过共生而存在的独特微生物系统的特征和性能的调查。这一基础性研究将提高对生物膜聚集体中跨界微生物相互作用的理解，同时也为推进有前途的处理技术的实施提供有价值的信息。在最初的造粒点，细菌和光养生物的协调，通过相关的群体感应信号分子和卵磷脂蛋白与溶解氧浓度的表达，将进行研究。三种常见的藻类污泥颗粒表型的物理特性，通过观察颗粒形态和测量其屈服强度，在纳米压缩仪器施加的物理应力将被记录。通过基于DNA的分子生物学技术，研究了不同藻类-污泥颗粒表型在实验室规模反应器中的物理特性与微生物生态学的关系。功能冗余和扩散阻力导致藻类污泥颗粒弹性的压力条件下，通过调查化学通量使用液体离子交换和安培微传感器和相关的任何变化，在处理性能的变化，以改变微生物生态将被证明。由此产生的数据将建立知识，这将有助于监测，操作和验证藻类污泥颗粒处理，推进藻类污泥颗粒工艺的实施。这项研究还将定义在满足废水目标的背景下光养生物和细菌之间的关系，到目前为止，这在很大程度上是未经探索的。

1452613ButlerCAREER: Fundamental Studies of Cross-Kingdom Aggregate Biofilms for Energy-Efficient Wastewater TreatmentWastewater treatment is becoming increasingly energy-intensive as treatment requirements become more stringent. A process known as Algal-Sludge Granule treatment uses larger particles which can be separated from the wastewater and, because of their size, settle more easily. The proposed process would occupy a smaller treatment footprint than many algae-based wastewater treatment systems and has the potential to be used as a bioenergy feedstock. The merits of this process make it compelling for adoption as a secondary treatment approach. However, this novel process is still in the early stages of development and much more knowledge is needed to understand the aggregation and function of these cross-kingdom granular biofilms. The PI will work with a teacher from the Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech to build technical literacy in hearing-impaired students, using the highly visual components of Algal-Sludge Granules to teach concepts of mass-balance, environmental contamination and water and wastewater treatment. During the grant period as many as 60 undergraduates per year (300 total) could participate in new project-based learning and there is potential for more than 500 hearing-impaired students to gain exposure to environmental engineering curricula. This proposed research will demonstrate: 1) the mechanisms of initial granulation, 2) the structural integrity of different granule morphologies and how physical characteristics relate to performance and microbial ecology, and, 3) the resiliency of Algal-Sludge Granules under conditions of stress. Before the discovery of Algal-Sludge Granules, using granules cultivated with both microalgae and bacteria in treatment systems was unprecedented. Large granules of phototrophs and bacteria are rarely observed in the environment. This study is an investigation of the characteristic and performance of a unique microbiological system where eukaryotes and prokaryotes exist through symbioses. This fundamental investigation will improve the understanding of cross-kingdom microbial interactions in a biofilm aggregate but also provide valuable information to advance a promising treatment technology towards implementation. At the point of initial granulation, the coordination of bacteria and phototrophs, by correlating the expression of quorum-sensing signaling molecules and lecithin proteins with dissolved oxygen concentrations, will be studied. The physical characteristics of three common Algal-Sludge Granule phenotypes by observing granule morphologies and measuring their yield strength in response to physical stresses imposed by a nano-compression instrument will be documented. The relation of the physical characteristics to microbial ecology through DNA-based molecular techniques and performance of different Algal-Sludge Granule phenotypes in bench-scale reactors will be studied. The functional redundancy and diffusion resistance leads to Algal-Sludge Granule resiliency under conditions of stress by investigating chemical fluxes using liquid-ion exchange and amperometric microsensors and correlating any changes in treatment performance to shifts microbial ecology will be demonstrated. The resulting data will build knowledge that will help inoculate, operate and validate Algal-Sludge Granule treatment, advancing Algal-Sludge Granule process toward implementation. This study will also define the relationships between phototrophs and bacteria in the context of meeting wastewater objectives, which until now is largely unexplored.