Project Grant R01ES017070

The University of Illinois received a two-year, $248,988 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation Division of Earth Sciences under the Geosciences federal grant program (CFDA 47.050) to conduct research on chromium isotope fractionation during oxidation of trivalent chromium by birnessite at near-neutral pH. The University will advance understanding of chromium geochemistry in modern and past environments by applying specialized, highly precise measurements of chromium stable...

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) awarded Chemfinity Technologies, Inc., a minority-owned small disadvantaged business in Brooklyn, NY, a $138,738 project grant under the NIEHS Superfund Hazardous Substances Basic Research and Education program (CFDA 93.143). The goal of the project is to develop and demonstrate the feasibility of Chemfinity's patented membrane-based ion-capture electrodialysis (IC-ED) technology for the remediation of acid mine drainage (AMD)...

This three-year, $335,860 project grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems aims to develop strategies to enhance bioremediation of toxic chemical soil contamination. Specifically, the principal investigator at the State University of New York at Buffalo will investigate using chemical gradients to accelerate the transport of bacteria through soil matrices toward contamination sites. The research will experimentally...

This $136,638 two-year Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Integrative Activities program (CFDA 47.083) will support the development of mixed microbial communities and membrane biofilm reactors to optimize biotransformation processes for metal and metalloid bioremediation and biorecovery from waste streams. Specifically, the awardee, Montana State University, will establish fungal-bacterial biofilms with relevant environmental microorganisms, develop membrane biofilm reactors to...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a $300,000 Early-Concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) under the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) to Boston College to investigate a new biohydrometallurgic approach for recycling spent lithium-ion batteries. The project aims to utilize microorganisms, specifically Acidothiobacillus ferrooxidans bacteria, to recover key battery cathode minerals such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese in a green, self-sustaining manner. This 2-year project...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a $2,000,000 Project Grant under CFDA 47.041 "Engineering" to The Johns Hopkins University to implement a novel approach for capturing and recovering scarce metals like nickel and cobalt from waste lithium-ion batteries using biofluids from fungi combined with advanced electrochemical techniques. The project aims to enhance the extraction of these valuable metals through the identification of efficient metal biomining compounds, metabolic...

This Project Grant award of $306,374 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) under the Environmental Health Federal Grant Program (CFDA 93.113) aims to develop novel microbiome-based solutions to reduce exposure to inorganic arsenic, a toxic heavy metal with widespread environmental contamination. The two-year project, running from September 2025 to August 2026, will focus on screening and optimizing gut bacterial strains to enhance arsenic metabolism and...

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering program Project Grant award of $455,126 will support research by The Regents of the University of Colorado to quantify and model the transport of bacteria in porous media like soil. The 5-year project aims to improve our understanding of how bacteria interact with the complex flow landscape in soils, which could inform strategies to control bacterial transport and prevent the spread of pathogens in groundwater, promote sustainable agriculture by...

This $650,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (CFDA 47.074 - Biological Sciences) to Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (Virginia Tech) supports research to investigate the role of environmental factors in the development of antibiotic resistance among bacteria in municipal wastewater treatment plants. The key products and services to be delivered under this 5-year award include: Conducting integrated field, laboratory, and computational studies to...

This $933,796 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation, under the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041), funds the development of paper-based biosensor test strips to detect soil contaminants such as arsenic and PFAS. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will engage citizen scientists and use bacteria as sensors to produce quantitative readings of contaminant concentrations in soil. Two types of bacteria - E. coli functioning as the...