Projects

Computational Studies of Catalyzed Chemical Transformations of Biomass and Derived Intermediates

Lead Institution

University of Alabama

Principal Investigator

David Dixon

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

There is a critical need to develop new, renewable sources of energy as well as feedstocks for the chemical industry. Biomass is a carbon neutral source of energy and can also address issues related…

First principles investigations on the coupling of polaron and excited carrier dynamics at TiO2/molecule interface

Lead Institution

University of Pittsburgh

Principal Investigator

Hrvoje Petek

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

We propose to perform computational studies of the structure and dynamics of polarons in TiO2 and related materials. The nature of charge carriers in photocatalytic semiconductors is crucial to their…

Comprehensive Characterization of the Cellulosomes from Anaerobic Gut Fungi

Lead Institution

University of California, Santa Barbara

Principal Investigator

Michelle O'Malley

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

This proposal seeks use of EMSL resources to characterize the secreted, multi-enzyme cellulosomes that originate from anaerobic gut fungi. Cellulosomes enable anaerobic fungi to tether different…

Improving the accuracy and reliability of Earth system reconstructions by quantifying mechanisms that modulate sub-micron heterogeneity in marine calcifiers

Lead Institution

Oregon State University

Principal Investigator

Jennifer Fehrenbacher

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Reconstructions of Earth's biogeochemical history, the interactions between the ocean, atmosphere, and global environmental conditions, are commonly based on reconstructions generated using…

Developing a Modular Scaffold to Drive the Symmetric Assembly of Cellular Proteins for Single Particle Cryo-EM Imaging

Lead Institution

University of California, Los Angeles

Principal Investigator

Todd Yeates

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

High resolution structural studies can provide exceptionally valuable information on the workings of cellular components and molecular machines, many of which play critical roles in biological energy…

The Transformation of Tetrahedral to Octahedral Coordination in Anions of Interest in High-Level Tank Waste

Lead Institution

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Jian-zhi Hu

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

We propose to use nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), Raman and Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy in combination with computational modeling to study the conversion of soluble tetrahedral…

System Approaches to Study Soybean Root Biology at Single-Cell Resolution

Lead Institution

University of Missouri - Columbia

Principal Investigator

Gary Stacey

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

The long-term goal of this project is to further basic understanding of the agronomically important Bradyrhizobium japonicum-soybean nitrogen fixing symbiosis. Soybeans are the major source of…

Implications of U(IV)-silicate core-shell colloids for radionuclide transport

Lead Institution

University of Manchester

Principal Investigator

Samuel Shaw

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Here we will use a range of techniques to advance fundamental and predictive understanding of uranium colloids in the subsurface environment. Recent work has highlighted that U(IV)-silicate colloids…

Characterizing the functional transition of endophytic fungi during plant senescence

Lead Institution

University of California, Santa Barbara

Principal Investigator

Ryoko Oono

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Decomposition of leaf litter by a diverse microbial community is a major biogeochemical process in the global carbon cycle. Fungi are considered the primary decomposers of plant litter, especially of…

Wet Non-Aqueous Supercritical Fluid Interactions with Densified Model Rock Materials

Lead Institution

St. Mary's College of Maryland

Principal Investigator

Geoffrey Bowers

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Our research program investigates the fundamental molecular-scale dynamics, energetics, and reactivity of geochemically relevant solid-fluid interfaces by integrating experimental spectroscopy and…

Fluxomics-based elucidation of metabolic remodeling and optimization strategies for enhancing bioproduction efficiency in microbial factories under selection pressure

Lead Institution

University of Maryland, College Park

Principal Investigator

Daniel Dwyer

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Well characterized bacterial models such as Escherichia coli are ubiquitously used as microbial factories in the commercial production of biofuels and bioproducts. The increasingly optimized…

The persistence of soil organic carbon in the mineralosphere as a function of the soil microbiome, proteome, and exometabolome

Lead Institution

University of California, Berkeley

Principal Investigator

Mary Firestone

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

Soils store more carbon (C) than the atmosphere and biosphere combined, yet the fundamental mechanisms that regulate the persistence of this vast pool of C remain elusive. Soil organic matter (SOM)…

Stabilization of organic carbon by complexation with iron colloids formed during biogeochemical weathering of basalt

Lead Institution

University of Arizona

Principal Investigator

Jon Chorover

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

This project is part of a larger, multi-year effort to evaluate the development of spatial and temporal heterogeneity as a result of microbial colonization and biogeochemical weathering of granular…

Plant Stress in a Changing Environment: Using Plant Metabolomics to Improve Predictions of Biogenic Secondary Organic Aerosol Production

Lead Institution

University of California, Irvine

Principal Investigator

Celia Faiola

Project type

Large-Scale EMSL Research

This research addresses a critical barrier in our understanding of the processes controlling biogenic secondary organic aerosol formation (SOA), and how they are evolving in a changing environment…

Investigation of mycogenic elemental selenium nanoparticles produced by Se(IV/VI)-reducing fungi under anoxic conditions

Lead Institution

University of Minnesota

Principal Investigator

Cara Santelli

Project type

Exploratory Research

Selenium (Se) is both a micronutrient required for most life and an element of environmental concern due to its toxicity at high concentrations. Selenium can exist as volatile, aqueous, or insoluble…

Unraveling Mechanisms of Complex Associations of Organic Carbon with Iron Oxide Minerals during Redox Transformations

Lead Institution

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Kevin Rosso

Project type

Exploratory Research

Fe(III)-oxide nanominerals are ubiquitous primary sorbents of organic carbon, organic acid exudates, and toxic metals in terrestrial, aquatic, and subsurface ecosystems. In soil ecosystems,…

Mapping the Organic-Mineral Interactions Responsible for Calcification in a Biogeochemically Significant Microbe

Lead Institution

University of Washington

Principal Investigator

Alexander Gagnon

Project type

Exploratory Research

The pace of skeletal growth in shells and bones is impacted by interactions between biologically produced organic compounds and the growing mineral. The organic component within biominerals is small,…

Chemical reactivity at complex solid/liquid interfaces for environmental and energy processes

Lead Institution

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Malsoon Lee

Project type

Exploratory Research

Modeling of the selective electrochemical hydrogenation for upgraded bio-oil at complex solid/liquid interface is important for a fundamental understanding and prediction of elctrocatalytic…

Computational Models and Methods for Describing Biogeochemical Transformations of Mercury

Lead Institution

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Jerry Parks

Project type

Exploratory Research

The objectives of this proposal are to develop realistic, environmentally relevant models of Hg-containing systems, investigate key mechanisms of Hg transformations that are important to global Hg…

Tracking switchgrass photosynthate via 13CO2 pulse-chase into the rhizosphere microbiome and metabolome

Lead Institution

Michigan State University

Principal Investigator

Lisa Tiemann

Project type

FICUS Research

This project aims to increase our understanding of plant-microbe interactions, specifically the exchange of plant C for microbially derived nitrogen. Plant exudates are a high energy foods for…