EFRI E3P: Massive Microplastics Remediation using Novel Microcleaners and Microbiome Processing Accelerated by Artificial Intelligence

EFRI E3P：使用人工智能加速的新型微型清洁剂和微生物组处理进行大规模微塑料修复

• 批准号: 2029327
• 负责人: Carol Hall
• 金额: $ 200万
• 依托单位: North Carolina State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-09-15 至 2024-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2029327&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: EFRI; E3P; Massive; Microplastics; Remediation

The removal of the polymeric microparticles (microplastics) that pervade the Earth’s oceans and waterways, and their conversion to value-added products, is an unresolved societal challenge. The scale of the problem prevents use of conventional chemical process technologies. To address this challenge, this Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) team will establish the intellectual foundations of a new technology platform aimed at addressing microplastics pollution. The platform includes efficient collection of microplastics from water bodies using self-propelled microcleaners that navigate complex environments and selectively capture/remove dispersed microplastic particles. The scavenged microplastics are then processed, using engineered microorganisms, into simple and versatile chemical building blocks that can be recycled into value-added products. A key goal of the project is to implement artificial intelligence methods to achieve the level of scalability and circularity necessary to enable the deconstructed microplastics products to be used for further microplastics capture. The team assembled to address these goals will create an outstanding interdisciplinary environment for training the next generation of scientists and engineers versed in the challenges of developing a circular economy. New educational opportunities centered on sustainability for K-16 and graduate students from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds will be offered. Public outreach efforts, which include development of research-inspired portable experimental kits, interactive games, and online maps, are to be disseminated by partnering with educational programs at museums. This project will advance the frontiers of fundamental knowledge related to active colloidal and soft matter systems, computational design of molecular recognition processes, directed evolution of biocatalysts, and process intensification using artificial intelligence, all in the context of developing innovative technological solutions to the massive problem of microplastics pollution in marine and freshwaters. EFRI team members will integrate these advances to provide the intellectual foundations of a circular and scalable technology platform in which captured microplastics are processed into deconstructed products that can be used for the capture of additional microplastics or converted into other value-added products. Specific intellectual challenges to be addressed include (i) the design of next-generation "active" particle microcleaners that have fibrillar coronas and/or move autonomously in aqueous environments thus providing efficient capture of microplastics, (ii) the discovery of genetic pathways enabling efficient depolymerization of microplastics and their implementation in rapidly-growing marine bacteria, (iii) the computational design of peptides that recognize specific polymeric surfaces for capture and sensing of microplastics and (iv) the development of liquid crystal-based sensors for microplastics and deep-learning algorithms that will be used to intensify the overall capture and deconstruction processes. This project will also provide an outstanding interdisciplinary environment for training the next generation of engineers. The team’s broadening participation plan is committed to providing interdisciplinary education and research opportunities centered on sustainability to K-16 and graduate students from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds. Research-inspired portable experimental kits, interactive games, and online maps will be developed and disseminated through partnerships with public educational programs. Thus, this project will not only introduce technologies for remediation of microplastics but will also train a diverse engineering cohort to solve grand engineering challenges, such as the "circular plastics economy." This project is supported by the Directorate for Engineering and the Directorate for Biological Sciences.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.

清除遍布地球海洋和水道的聚合物微粒（微塑料），并将其转化为增值产品，是一项尚未解决的社会挑战。这个问题的严重性阻碍了常规化学工艺技术的使用。为了应对这一挑战，EFRI（Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation）团队将建立一个旨在解决微塑料污染的新技术平台的知识基础。该平台包括使用自推进式微清洁器从水体中有效收集微塑料，这些微清洁器可在复杂的环境中导航并选择性地捕获/去除分散的微塑料颗粒。然后，利用工程微生物将清除的微塑料加工成简单而多功能的化学构件，这些化学构件可以回收利用成增值产品。 该项目的一个关键目标是实施人工智能方法，以实现必要的可扩展性和循环性，使解构的微塑料产品能够用于进一步的微塑料捕获。为实现这些目标而组建的团队将为培养下一代精通发展循环经济挑战的科学家和工程师创造一个杰出的跨学科环境。新的教育机会为中心的可持续性K-16和研究生从不同的和代表性不足的背景将提供。公共宣传工作，其中包括研究启发便携式实验套件，互动游戏和在线地图的开发，将通过与博物馆的教育计划合作进行传播。该项目将推进与活性胶体和软物质系统，分子识别过程的计算设计，生物催化剂的定向进化以及使用人工智能的过程强化相关的基础知识的前沿，所有这些都是在开发创新技术解决方案的背景下解决海洋和淡水中微塑料污染的大规模问题。EFRI团队成员将整合这些进展，为循环和可扩展的技术平台提供知识基础，在该平台中，捕获的微塑料被加工成可用于捕获额外微塑料或转化为其他增值产品的解构产品。需要解决的具体智力挑战包括：（i）设计下一代“活性”颗粒微清洁器，这些微清洁器具有纤维状冠状结构和/或在水性环境中自主移动，从而提供对微塑料的有效捕获，（ii）发现能够有效解聚微塑料的遗传途径及其在快速生长的海洋细菌中的实施，（iii）识别特定聚合物表面以捕获和传感微塑料的肽的计算设计;（iv）开发基于液晶的微塑料传感器和深度学习算法，用于强化整体捕获和解构过程。该项目还将为培养下一代工程师提供出色的跨学科环境。该团队的扩大参与计划致力于提供以可持续发展为中心的跨学科教育和研究机会，以K-16和来自不同和代表性不足背景的研究生。将通过与公共教育项目的合作，开发和传播研究启发的便携式实验工具包、互动游戏和在线地图。因此，该项目不仅将引入微塑料修复技术，还将培养多样化的工程队伍，以解决重大的工程挑战，例如“循环塑料经济”。“该项目由工程理事会和生物科学理事会支持。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

项目成果

Superhydrophobic and Anti‐Icing Coatings Made of Hierarchically Nanofibrillated Polymer Colloids

由分级纳米原纤化聚合物胶体制成的超疏水和防冰涂层

• DOI: 10.1002/marc.202200513
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Macromolecular Rapid Communications
• 影响因子: 4.6
• 作者: Williams, Austin H.;Roh, Sangchul;Kotb, Yosra;Velev, Orlin D.
• 通讯作者: Velev, Orlin D.

An integrated chemical engineering approach to understanding microplastics

理解微塑料的综合化学工程方法

• DOI: 10.1002/aic.18020
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: AIChE Journal
• 影响因子: 3.7
• 作者: Bang, Rachel S.;Bergman, Michael;Li, Tianyu;Mukherjee, Fiona;Alshehri, Abdulelah S.;Abbott, Nicholas L.;Crook, Nathan C.;Velev, Orlin D.;Hall, Carol K.;You, Fengqi
• 通讯作者: You, Fengqi

AI framework with computational box counting and Integer programming removes quantization error in fractal dimension analysis of optical images

• DOI: 10.1016/j.cej.2022.137058
• 发表时间: 2022-05-28
• 期刊: CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
• 影响因子: 15.1
• 作者: Liang, Haoyue;Tsuei, Michael;You, Fengqi
• 通讯作者: You, Fengqi

Silica Supraparticles with Self‐Oscillatory Vertical Propulsion: Mechanism & Theoretical Description

具有自振荡垂直推进力的二氧化硅超颗粒：机制

• DOI: 10.1002/ppsc.202200021
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Particle & Particle Systems Characterization
• 影响因子: 2.7
• 作者: Kim, Hyung‐Ju;Sperling, Marcel;Velev, Orlin D.;Gradzielski, Michael
• 通讯作者: Gradzielski, Michael

Fluid Flow Templating of Polymeric Soft Matter with Diverse Morphologies

具有不同形态的聚合物软物质的流体流动模板

• DOI: 10.1002/adma.202211438
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Advanced Materials
• 影响因子: 29.4
• 作者: Bang, Rachel S.;Roh, Sangchul;Williams, Austin H.;Stoyanov, Simeon D.;Velev, Orlin D.
• 通讯作者: Velev, Orlin D.