Adam Rothman: Chemical & Biological Engineering
Mentor: James Connolly, Robin Gerlach -- Center for Biofilm Engineering
Modeling Kinetics of Ureolytic Bacteria in Flow Systems
Microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) is a promising technology that can be used in a wide range of
applications from carbon sequestration to bioremediation of heavy metals. MICP can be performed by ureolytic soil
bacteria, like Sporosarcina pasteurii through manipulation of the local and bulk saturation index. The purpose of this
research is to develop kinetic parameters for ureolytic bacteria in biofilm flow systems analogous to what could be
found in the subsurface and apply these parameters to generate models for how urea is utilized by the biofilm. Both S.
pasteurii and a recombinant Escherichia coli strain were grown in flow systems to generate kinetic data. The biofilm
systems were maintained until steady state was reached. Steady state aqueous measurements along with biofilm
geometry data were used to generate a basic COMSOL model of the process.
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