The United States of America As Represented by the Secretary of

USA As Represented by Secretary of the Navy

Ut-battelle, Inc.

University of Houston System

U.S. Geological Survey

Ronald S Oremland

Laurence G Miller

Ilia N Ivanov

Seamus A Curran

Beth Louise Armstrong

Tommy Joe Phelps

Pooran Chandra Joshi

Sampath Dias

Michelle K Kidder

Ji Won Moon

Gyoung Gug Jang

Werner Blau

David E Graham

Tracey L Connell

Jun Wang

Shaun Baesman

Christopher B Jacobs

Shaun M Baesman

A method for producing metal chalcogenide nanoparticles, the method comprising: (i) producing hydrogen chalcogenide-containing vapor from a microbial source, wherein said microbial source comprises: (a) chalcogen-reducing microbes capable of producing hydrogen chalcogenide vapor from a chalcogen-containing source; (b) a culture medium suitable for sustaining said chalcogen-reducing microbes; (c) at least one chalcogen-containing compound that can be converted to hydrogen chalcogenide vapor by said chalcogen-reducing microbes; and (d) at least one nutritive compound that provides donatable electrons to said chalcogen-reducing microbes during consumption of the nutritive compound by said chalcogen-reducing microbes; and (ii) directing said hydrogen chalcogenide-containing vapor into a metal-containing solution comprising a metal salt dissolved in a solvent to produce metal chalcogenide nanoparticles in said solution, wherein said chalcogen is sulfur or selenium, and said chalcogenide is sulfide or selenide, respectively. The invention is also directed to metal chalcogenide nanoparticle compositions produced as above and having distinctive properties.

Microbially-mediated method for synthesis of metal chalcogenide nanoparticles

The present disclosure describes composite materials containing a polymer material and a nanoscale material dispersed in the polymer material. The nanoscale materials may be biologically synthesized, such as tellurium nanorods synthesized by. Composite materials of the present disclosure may have optical limiting properties and find use in optical limiting devices.

Composites comprising biologically-synthesized nanomaterials

Methyl halide contaminants are oxidized in a reaction chamber containing a methylotrophic bacterium through direct oxidation of the methyl halide contaminant. Methyl halides may be used as a disinfectant, with the remnant methyl halide contaminant oxidized through direct oxidation by the methylotrophic bacterium.

Bioreactor method, apparatus and product thereby

A method is provided for enhancing oxidation of methyl bromide during agricultural fumigations of fields using a fumigant containing methyl bromide. The method comprises adding a methylotrophic bacterium to the soil in an amount effective to provide bacterial oxidation of the methyl bromide. The bacterium preferably comprises a bacterium isolated from agricultural soil, and, in a specific embodiment, comprises a 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequence in the Alpha subgroup of Proteobacteria designated strain IMB-1 (ATCC 202197). The fumigant also includes chloropicrin in an amount reduced to a level which permits said bacterial oxidation but while still enables the chloropicrin to serve as a warning agent for excessive release of methyl bromide from the soil. The soil can be pretreated with methyl iodide. The bacterium is applied to the soil as freeze-dried bacterial cells during the fumigation operation.

Method for enhancing oxidation of methyl bromide with strain IMB-1 (ATCC

A method and apparatus for removing selenate from waste water through the use of selenate respiring microorganisms under substantially anoxic conditions is described. The method includes a first zone for removing nitrate by assimilation into biomass. The first zone is maintained under aerobic conditions and is separated from a second zone where selenate is respired to elemental selenium by selenate respiring microorganisms under anoxic conditions. Biomass produced in the first zone may be processed to provide nutrients and electron acceptors for the maintenance of selenate respiring microorganisms when selenate becomes growth limiting. An optional sulfate reduction zone is provided in the method and apparatus where hydrogen sulfide is produced. The hydrogen sulfide so produced is circulated to the second zone and may be used to reduce residual selenite to elemental selenium.

Selenate removal from waste water

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Ronald S Oremland