Microbiolial interfaces in engineered environmental systems

通过支持现代社会的基础设施保护环境，对于提供安全和高质量的生活至关重要；也是土木工程的一个特别重要的目标。我的NSERC资助的研究探索了微生物和工程系统之间的接口，用于生物废水处理。其目标是更好地整合有关微生物结构(絮体和薄膜)的生物、化学和物理特征及其行为的知识，这些知识与传统悬浮生长系统和基于固定薄膜工艺的先进技术有关。具体目标包括：i)促进对与絮凝体胞外聚合物(EPS)和微生物界面相关的特定糖结合物和粘附素蛋白的作用的了解；ii)阐明影响一体化固定膜活性污泥(IFAS)系统中悬浮和附着种群中的絮体和膜性能的因素；iii)更好地了解曝气膜生物反应器生物膜中的微环境，特别是与膜-膜界面的生物膜特性和稳定性相关的电化学梯度(氧和氧化还原)和EPS；对环境工程和环境生物技术的研究学生进行培训，并转让新的工具和方法来研究和开发先进的环境技术。我们采用实验室规模和中试规模的系统，旨在模拟废水处理过程，并以特定的方式在受控良好的条件下运行，以影响絮体和膜的性能。咨询工程师和运营商将使我们能够将这种方法与不同配置的全尺寸系统的经验相结合。我们继续在实验室开发的生化和分子工具的基础上，提高微生物结构的物理化学性质的重要性，并独一无二地采用先进的光学显微镜(共焦成像、原子力显微镜和拉曼共焦成像)和高分辨率扫描透射电子显微镜，使我们能够建立结构-功能关系。

Protecting the environment through infrastructure that supports modern society is critical to providing a safe and high quality of life; and is a particularly important goal for Civil Engineering. My NSERC-supported research explores the interface of microbiology and engineered systems for biological wastewater treatment. The goal is to better integrate knowledge of biological, chemical and physical characteristics of microbial structures (flocs and films) and their behaviour, that are associated with traditional suspended growth systems, and advanced technologies based on fixed-film processes. The specific objectives include: i) advancing the understanding the role of particular glycoconjugates and adhesin proteins associated with extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) of floc and in microbial interfaces; ii) elucidating factors affecting floc and film properties in the suspended and attached populations in integrated fixed film activated sludge (IFAS) systems; iii) achieving a better understanding of the microenvironment in aerated-membrane bioreactor biofilms, particularly with respect to electrochemical gradients (oxygen and redox) and EPS, in relation to biofilm properties and stability at the membrane-film interface; and iv) training of research students in environmental engineering and environmental biotechnology, and the transfer of novel tools and approaches to the investigation and development of advanced environmental technology. We employ both bench-scale and pilot-scale systems designed to simulate wastewater treatment processes and are run under well-controlled conditions in specific ways to influence floc and film properties. Consultation with engineers and operators will enable us to integrate this approach with the experience of full-scale systems of different configurations. We continue to build upon our biochemical and molecular tools developed in our laboratory to advance the importance of physicochemical properties of microbial structures, and uniquely employ advanced optical microscopy (confocal imaging, atomic force microscopy and Raman confocal imaging) and high resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy that permits us to establish structure-function relationships.