Thrust 2: Environmental Protection and Restoration
Projects in the Environmental Protection and Ecological Restoration thrust include the systems integration projects Restoring the Surface Erosion Resistance of Disturbed Soil Sites (via organic matter decomposition and stabilized soil aggregates), Development of a Doubly Cyclic Push-Pull Scheme, the development of Microbially Enhanced Permeable Reactive Barriers, and Restoring the Microbial Crust (in desert soils). Enabling technology projects under this thrust include Electro-Kinetic Subsurface Transport for Mineral Precipitation, and Design and Construction of a Rainfall Simulator. The development of a Doubly Cyclic Push-Pull Scheme seeks to enhance uniform delivery of microbes and nutrients in the subsurface, overcoming geologic heterogeneity. Electro-kinetics employ coupled flows of ions and fluids subject to an electrical potential field to facilitate subsurface transport, even in soils with low hydraulic conductivity. Electro-kinetics can also raise the pH of the pore water, thereby facilitating precipitation. The Permeable Reactive Barrier project will examine the potential for microbially enhancing zeolites to more efficiently remove arsenic and selenium oxyanions from groundwater.
Projects under other thrusts that are related to this thrust include: Biostimulation for Biocementation and Biofilm Development (biostimulation has environmental applications), Engineering Applications of EICP (carbonate precipitation can be used for erosion control and to sequester radionuclides migrating in groundwater), and Carbon Cycle Restoration in Mine Tailings (an ecological restoration technique).
Environmental Protection and Restoration Faculty
- Lead: A. Delgado , Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, ASU
- P. Bandini, Civil Engineering, NMSU
- T. Boyer, Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, ASU
- H. Cadillo-Quiroz, Life Sciences, ASU
- A. Delgado, Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, ASU
- F. Garcia-Pichel, School of Life Sciences, ASU
- N. Hamdan, Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, ASU
- E. Kavazanjian, Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, ASU
- C. Papelis, Civil Engineering, NMSU
- E. Shock, Earth and Space Exploration, ASU
- C. Torres, Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, ASU
- Y. Zhang, Civil Engineering, NMSU
Thrust 2 Projects
| ID Number | Project Title |
|---|---|
| PR6/PR43 | Electrokinetic Sub-Surface Transport |
| PR7 | Microbially Enhanced Iron-Modified Zeolite Permeable Reactive Barrier |
| PR16 | Microbial Metabolic Exploration from Extreme Environments |
| PR42 | Removal of Phosphorous and Nitrogen from Impacted Water via Mineral Precipitation and Microbial Transformation |
| PR43 | Electrokinetic Transport in Soils for Calcium Carbonate Precipitation |
| PR58 | Restoration of Soil Crust Cover for Erosion and Fugitive Dust |
| PR63 | Bio-based Barriers by Stimulating Microbial Induced Iron Precipitation |
| PR71 | Changes in Methane Emissions and Microbes in Landfill Cells Manipulated for Sustainable Biogas Energy at Salt River Landfill |
| PR76 | Enhanced Control of Microbial Activity and Substrate Delivery via Inhibitors for In-situ Contaminant Treatment |
| PR78 | In-situ Manganese Biomineralization in Granular Media for Contaminant Removal |