Project category: National Natural Science Foundation of China-Mianshang Project
Principle Investigator: Li Cui
Valid from 01. 01. 2012 to 31. 12. 2015
In various applications of membrane technologies, bacterial adhesion and the subsequent formation of biofilm on membranes affect seriously the separation efficiency of membranes, in addition, it is very difficult to remove biofilm by many physical, even chemical methods, and thus cause permanent damage to membranes. It is significant for membrane technology if biofilm can be inhibited. We will develop surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) as a new tool to in-situ study the biofilm. The whole development process of biofilm from the initial bacterial adhesion to biofilm formation will be studied by SERS. In the adhesion period, SERS will be used to discriminate the bacteria with strong adhesion ability and study the influence of membrane properties on bacterial adhesion, based on which early diagnosis of biofilm will be realized. In the growth period, extracellular polymer substances (EPS) secreted by bacteria play an important role in the formation of biofilm, SERS will be used to in-situ study the chemical composition of EPS and change of the abundance of each composition in the forming process of biofilm, analyze the key EPS molecules for the formation of biofilm, and investigate the influence of various external factors on the formation of EPS and the biofilm-forming ability of bacteria, including the surface properties of membrane, enzymes to degrade EPS, Ag ion, hydraulic conditions. The above investigations will provide important clues for biofilm inhibition.