This award establishes an Engineering Research Center on Interfacial Microbial Process Engineering at the Montana State University with Prof. William G. Characklis as Director. The long term goal of the Center is to institute a national resource to meet the entrepreneurial needs of the U.S.industry dealing with the technological problems and opportunities in interfacial microbial processes. The research programs of the Center will initially address the specific needs of industrial biotechnology which focus on processing of high-volume/low-value products related to more efficient production of energy, materials and chemicals, agriculture and, a cleaner environment. The Center's fundamental research will be directed to the following collective areas: (1) analysis of microbiological phenomena at surfaces and interfaces, and the development of biological paradigms of life on surfaces, (2) the relationship between interfacial structure and biological function and, (3) advancement of process engineering models for fundamental biological interactions at surfaces. The cross-disciplinary system oriented research strategy is directed to the following technological objectives: (1) development of in situ microsensors and microbiosensors to define spatial and temporal chemical gradients in the interface environment, (2) refinement of methods for image analysis and related microscopy techniques to provide information of spatial and temporal composition of the basic aggregates at the interfaces and, (3) simulation modeling to provide the basis of experimental design to bridge the gap between microscale and mesoscale experimental findings and macroscale applications. Databases will be created from experimental and industrial data to provide parameters for the simulations. The Center will develop a cross-disciplinary academic program for graduates and undergraduates to stimulate the students to be skilled in the emerging field of microbial process engineering. A minor in Interfacial Microbial Process Engineering at the Ph.D. level will be implemented. The Center will build a strong industrial collaboration program by expanding the existing program at the Montana State University. As a partner, the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) will participate in the research and educational activities. Other universities and institutions in the country will provide research collaboration in selective areas where special skills are not available at the Center.
