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会污染水，并对人类和生态系统健康构成威胁。社会必须通过开发有效的技术来消除这些化学品，以防止这些影响。两种有前途的方法包括使用工程生物膜（在表面上生长的微生物聚集体）和电化学处理。该项目是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途径。重点是工程碳电极和生物膜降解污染物双酚A。结果将影响其他领域，如微生物电合成，生物传感器，感染控制和生物电子学。该项目将培训代表性不足的学生参加伊利诺伊理工学院和匹兹堡大学的本科研究。20名中学教师将参加一个教师科学项目。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接受培训。这些努力将共同影响超过2，000名学生，以扩大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依赖于高水平的生物膜控制。可持续的操作要求电极表面的条件促进适应待氧化的污染物套件的生物膜的发展。本项目的目标是通过识别和调整最佳的碳电极形态来实现这一目标，以形成最佳的有机废物分解的生物膜电极。生物膜的形成和有机化合物的降解，通过增加电子转移往往是由电极形态和生物膜电极相互作用。我们将通过连接不同碳电极的物理和电化学性质来研究电极形态对生物膜电极性能的影响，以形成坚固和导电的生物膜，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电化学系统中。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，这将导致生物电化学系统的新设计框架。该项目将在匹兹堡和芝加哥开展广泛的教育和推广计划，包括本科生研究、K-12教师培训和中学生科学计划。这些努力将共同影响2,000多名学生，以扩大参与STEM和提高国家的科学素养。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。