Who we are
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Partner 1 - University of Edinburgh (UEDIN), School of Geosciences
This team has a long experience in deep subterranean habitats like depleted oil or gas reservoirs, saline aquifers and hydrothermal/geothermal environments, and is well equipped to work with the conditions characteristic for these deep habitats. They are also the coordinators of the project.
Activities of the School of Geosciences has recently created a microbial geochemistry group which is involved in a range of bioremediation and biomineralisation approaches to solving contaminant problems and has had strong backing from the school through refurbishment of a new laboratory. The group has considerable experience in experimental design and has custom built equipment for experimental studies of fluid flow and geochemistry.
For more info: http://www.geos.ed.ac.uk/
Partner 2 - Universidad de Granada (UGR)
This team accumulated in-depth knowledge in bacterial living in lagoon and other hypersaline environments. They have identified 20 different carbonate precipitating bacteria and are analyzing their metabolism. Their experience is essentially on moderately to highly saline bacteria, usually living in aerobiosis, in solid and liquid medium. They have often added a strong mineralogical component in their research, e.g. investigated closely the crystal formation of the various carbonate minerals, in particular, the nucleation.
Two faculties and four departments of the "Universidad de Granada", under the supervision of the Department of Microbiology, will be involved in order to benefit from their complementary expertise and knowledge.
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Pharmacy;
- Department of Inorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy;
- Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología-I.A.C.T., Facultad de Ciencias;
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias.
For more info: http://farmacia.ugr.es/index.php
Partner 3: Université de Lausanne (UNIL)
This team is specialized in bacteria living in terrestrial environments such as tropical soils, and especially the carbonating groups feeding on oxalates. They use spectral analysis and numerical models simulating organo-mineral growth to demonstrate the significance of carbonatation in tropical soils.
The Biogeosciences Group works on this oxalate carbonate pathway where carbon captured by the tree’s photosynthesis from atmospheric CO2 and partially accumulated in the form of oxalate molecules is finally incorporated into a long term stable mineral, calcium carbonate and its environmental consequences. Several species of tropical trees belonging to different families and used for timber production were shown to accumulate important amounts of calcite in these soils.
For more info: http://www.unil.ch/enseignement/page65213.html
Partner 4 - Technishe Universiteit Delft (TUDelft)
The team is specialized in process engineering applications of microbial ecosystems and in computational models combining microbial and chemical conversion with mass transportation in complex geometrical systems like soil. They are familiar with environmental assessments and public perception analyses.
The group of Environmental Biotechnology in the Department of Biotechnology, is researching microbial ecosystems and their use in process engineering applications. In the field relevant to this project, the group has extensive experience in molecular ecology, alkaline microbiology, biofilm growth, and flow in porous media and biocarbonatation processes. The latter is presently oriented to use in civil engineering practice as soil strengthening, leak sealing, and oil field applications.
For more info: http://www.bt.tudelft.nl/ebt
Partner 5 - Biomim-Greenloop S.A.
Biomim-Greenloop S.A. is a young SME whose mission is to develop innovative solutions and positive strategies to help companies and governments in their transitions towards sustainability.
It applies biomimicry principles (e.g. taking inspiration from living organisms and ecosystems) to finding appropriate solutions to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and the end of cheap oil. Greenloop has identified bacterial carbonatation as a mean to sequester CO2, set up the team and built up the whole project in partnership with the universities. It is also responsible for the first linking with potential industrial partners and for the results dissemination.
For more info: http://www.greenloop.eu
Partner 6: Université de Neuchâtel (UNINE)
This team works on several aspects of microbial ecology, in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. One of the microbial groups studied in our group are soil bacteria degrading calcium oxalate. We studied their diversity, abundance. In addition, we studied the role of saprophytic fungi in the cycle of oxalate (production and degradation), and their interaction with bacteria for the oxalate-carbonate pathway. We use a polyphasic approach considering both, culturing and culture-independent molecular approaches.
The laboratory of microbiology at UNINE works in close collaboration with the Biogeosciences group of UNIL on the oxalate carbonate pathway. We complement the fieldwork and the geological studies carried by UNIL, studying the biological aspects of calcium oxalate cycling by bacteria and fungi.
For more info: http://www2.unine.ch/lamun
