Our research on electron shuttling and biochar focuses on the facilitation of electron transfer between microorganisms and iron minerals by redox-active organic compounds, i.e. natural organic matter (NOM) and biochar. We characterize NOM and biochar and perform cultivation and cell suspension experiments with different bacteria, e.g. Fe(III)-reducers, to determine the rates and extent of Fe(III) reduction in the presence and absence of electron shuttles. We use a combination of analytical techniques such as electrochemistry, NMR, electron microscopy, FT-ICR-MS, XRD and Mössbauer spectroscopy to analyze the organic compounds as well as the iron minerals which are formed.
Team members: Yuge Bai, Zhen Yang, Nikolas Hagemann, Muammar Mansor
Collaborators: Thomas Borch, Thomas Scholten, Amy McKenna, Stefan Haderlein, Ruben Kretzschmar, Martin Obst
