Biologically Upcycling Metals

金属的供应是有限的，因此金属的短缺和供应安全已成为世界性的问题。我们必须确保我们不会把当前的愿望置于未来的需要之上，从而耗尽重要的资源。为了解决这一全球性挑战，我们需要转向一种循环的、更可持续的经济，在这种经济中，我们更明智地利用我们拥有的资源。循环经济的基本原则之一是废物是未使用的原料；通过废物流的设计、工程和再利用，有机和无机成分可以被设计成适合一个材料循环。在这项研究中，我提议设计和改造细菌，让它们为我们重新利用我们的废物流。我计划利用生物学进步所提供的新工具和技术来设计一种微生物，这种微生物有能力将废物流中的关键金属离子升级为高价值的纳米粒子。某些细菌具有减少金属阳离子并形成零价纯金属沉淀的能力，这是它们抵御有毒金属阳离子的生存机制的一部分。我将采用合成生物学中使用的模块化方法，以及迭代设计、构建和测试周期，以增强、操纵和标准化这些纳米级沉淀物作为高价值产品的生物制造。通过生命周期评估的培训，我将确定采用具有高价值资源回收的生物废物处理方法对企业的经济效益，并将免费向其他研究人员（学术和工业）提供生物原料，以鼓励用户对该技术的拉动。

Metals have a finite supply, thus metal scarcity and supply security have become worldwide issues. We have to ensure that we do not drain important resources by prioritizing the desires of the present over the needs of the future. To solve such a global challenge we need to move to a circular, more sustainable economy where we use the resources we have more wisely. One of the founding principles of a circular economy is that waste is an unused feedstock; that organic and inorganic components can be engineered to fit within a materials cycle, by the design, engineering and re-purposing of waste streams. In this fellowship I propose to design and engineer bacteria to repurpose our waste streams for us. I plan to use the new tools and techniques provided by advances in biology to engineer a microbe with the ability to upcycle critical metal ions from waste streams into high value nanoparticles. Certain bacteria have the ability to reduce metal cations and form precipitates of zero-valence, pure metals, as part of their survival mechanism to defend against toxic levels of metal cations. I will adopt the modular approach used in Synthetic Biology alongside iterative design, build and test cycles in order to enhance, manipulate and standardise the biomanufacture of these nanosize precipitates as high value products. With training in life cycle assessment, I will determine the financial benefits for business of adopting biological waste treatment methods with high value resource recovery and I will provide biogenic material to other researchers (academic and industrial) free of charge to encourage user pull for the technology.