MICROBIAL PROCESSES IN BIOENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING: BIOREMEDIATION, BIOAEROSOLS AND BIOENERGY

For this Hatch project, research will be conducted that addresses the identity, function and implications of microorganisms in natural and engineered systems whose activities may have an impact on ecological and human health and environmental sustainability. The research activities associated with this project are focused in three major thrust areas in the field of bioenvironmental engineering: (1) Bioremediation, (2) Bioaerosols, and (3) Bioenergy. The common thread linking these areas is that activities of complex microbial communities greatly affect environmental quality e.g. via degradation of contaminants in the environment and by bioconversion of waste materials. Understanding and/or controlling microbial communities across a range of environments can allow better prediction of environmental outcomes, restore polluted environments and achieve a more sustainable environment. Common paradigms of behavior of complex microbial systems and systematic methods of study of microbial communities also link these projects.The outcomes and results of this proposed project will benefit citizens of New Jersey and the world by providing new information about the function and identity of microorganisms involved in processes important for environmental restoration and sustainable energy production. Specifically, this work will (1) establish scientific information about bacteria that dehalogenate halogenated organic compounds in groundwater and sediments, (2) determine whether bacteria and other microorganisms may transform pollutants in air, and (3) establish engineering parameters for the production of biofuels such as methane and hydrogen from diverse waste biomass.