Microbial sulfur geochemistry in acid environments

加拿大在采矿和矿产勘探以及促进环境可持续采矿实践的相关技术方面处于世界领先地位。然而，AMD仍然是加拿大日益严重的水质问题。微生物广泛存在于水生环境系统中，影响着许多重要的地球化学过程。拟议的研究将开展第一个综合监测项目之一，评估微生物S地球化学的原位。将在季节和年尺度上研究环境特征条件下的综合絮凝体地球化学和微生物群落。现场结果将捕捉到这些因素之间的协同相互作用，这些因素在一个关键的、研究较少的水生隔室——悬浮絮体中，为酸性矿井水中微生物驱动的S氧化和酸生成提供更现实和必要的地图。配套的实验室实验将描述研究较少的微生物相关和常见的矿山环境因素（如Fe（III）和NO3-）作为微生物絮团S地球化学驱动因素的作用。该研究的短期目标将具体限制悬浮絮团作为参与酸生成的活性微生物室的作用，细菌驱动的酸生成在季节和年度时间尺度上的大小，并评估酸性硫杆菌絮团S地球化学原位生态多样性在酸性矿山系统中。这项研究将产生(1)对AMD产生的关键过程的新的基本理解(2)为更准确的监测和监测计划提供新的诊断指标和(3)缓解和生物修复的新策略，改善加拿大人的健康和生活质量。这个跨学科的领域和实验室项目将在前沿的环境地球化学和微生物技术方面培养3名博士和最多5名本科HQP。

Canada is a world leader in mining and mineral exploration and associated technologies to promote environmentally sustainable mining practises. However AMD remains a significant and growing Canadian water quality issue. Microorganisms are widespread across aquatic environmental systems where they affect many important geochemical processes. The proposed research will carry out one of the first comprehensive monitoring programs evaluating microbial S geochemistry in situ. Integrated floc S geochemistry and microbial community will be investigated under environmentally characterized conditions over seasonal and annual scales. Field results will capture the synergistic interactions amongst these factors in a key and poorly studied aquatic compartment, suspended floc, providing a more realistic and necessary map of microbially driven S oxidation and acid generation in acidic mine waters. Companion laboratory experiments will delineate the roles of poorly studied, microbially relevant and common mine environmental factors such as Fe(III) and NO3- as drivers for microbial floc S geochemistry. The short term goals of the proposed research will specifically constrain the role of suspended floc as a reactive microbial compartment involved in acid generation, the magnitude of bacterially driven acid generation over seasonal and annual timescales, and evaluate the ecological diversity of Acidithiobacilli floc S geochemistry in situ in acid mine systems. This research will generate (1) new fundamental understanding of key processes involved in AMD generation (2) new diagnostic indicators for more accurate surveillance and monitoring programs and (3) new strategies for mitigation and bioremediation improving the health and quality of life for Canadians. This interdisciplinary field and laboratory program will train 3 PhD and up to 5 undergraduate HQP in leading edge environmental geochemical and microbiological techniques.