Michael D. AitkenProfessor and Chair
Dept. of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
166 Rosenau Hall
Gillings School of Global Public Health
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Education
Michael D. Aitken
Fluorescence photomicrograph of Pseudomonas
saccharophila P15 growingMy research spans a range of activities involving the evaluation and application of biochemical processes towards the solution of environmental and waste management problems. Over the past 20 years I have studied - with the invaluable help, hard work and creativity of a group of highly talented students and post-docs - the biotransformation and biodegradation of organic chemicals; the bioremediation of soil contaminated with hydrophobic organic contaminants; thermophilic anaerobic digestion to inactivate pathogens in municipal wastewater sludge; and the use of biological processes to treat a range of other waste materials. Following is a list of ongoing and recently completed research projects. More detail on these projects is also available.
Excavation
of contaminated soil at a former
manufactured-gas plant site in Salisbury, NC
(photo by Stephen Richardson)
Current Research
Bioavailability and Biodegradation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; 4/1/06-3/31-10 (F. Pfaender, Co-PI).
Selected Previous Projects
Who’s Doing What in a Complex Bioreactor? Stable Isotope Probing of Specific Degraders in Engineered Biological Treatment Processes; National Science Foundation.
Factors Influencing the Biodegradation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Contaminated Soil; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Laboratory Investigation of a Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion System to Treat Municipal Wastewater Sludge (Co-PI with M. Sobsey); Brown and Caldwell, Inc.
Bacterial Chemotaxis to Naphthalene Desorbing from a Nonaqueous-phase Liquid; National Science Foundation.
The Role of Bacterial Chemotaxis in the Biodegradation of Naphthalene in Porous Media (C.T. Miller, Co-investigator); National Science Foundation.
Maximizing Acetate Production in Primary Sludge Fermentation; Orange Water and Sewer Authority, Carrboro, NC.
Biofiltration of Air Contaminated with Benzene and Chlorobenzene; Union Carbide Corporation.
Slurry Phase Bioremediation of Contaminated Soil from a Former Manufactured Gas Plant Site; University of North Carolina Water Resources Research Institute.
Effects of Bioavailability and Carbon Source Supplementation on Anaerobic Biodegradation of DDT and its Metabolites in Contaminated Soil; Ciba-Geigy Corporation.
Park, J.Z., L.M. Ball, S.D. Richardson, H. Zhu and M.D. Aitken (2008) Oxidative Mutagenicity of Polar Fractions from Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Soils, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 27:2207-2215.
Jones, M.D., D.R. Singleton, D. Carstensen, S.N. Powell, J.S. Swanson, F.K. Pfaender, M.D. Aitken (2008) Effect of Incubation Conditions on the Enrichment of Pyrene-Degrading Bacteria Identified by Stable Isotope Probing in an Aged, PAH-Contaminated Soil, Microbial Ecology 56:341-347 (DOI 10.1007/s00248-007-9352-9).
Singleton, D.R., S.D. Richardson and M.D. Aitken (in press) Effects of Enrichment with Phthalate on Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Biodegradation in Contaminated Soil, Biodegradation 19:577-587 (DOI 10.1007/s10532-007-9163-1).
Powell, S.N., D.R. Singleton and M.D. Aitken (2008) Effects of Enrichment with Salicylate on Bacterial Selection and PAH Mineralization in a Microbial Community from a Bioreactor Treating Contaminated Soil, Environmental Science & Technology, 42:4099-4105.
Zhu, H., J.C. Roper, F.K.
Pfaender and M.D. Aitken (2008) Effects of Anaerobic Incubation on the Desorption
of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons from Contaminated Soils, Environmental
Toxicology and Chemistry, 27:837-844.
Singleton, D.R., M. Hunt,
S.N. Powell, R. Frontera-Suau, and M.D. Aitken (2007), Stable-Isotope Probing
With Multiple Growth Substrates To Determine Substrate Specificity of Uncultivated
Bacteria, Journal of Microbiological Methods, 69:180-187.
Aitken, M.D., M.D. Sobsey, N.A. Van Abel, K.E. Blauth, D.R. Singleton, P.L. Crunk, C. Nichols, G.W. Walters, and M. Schneider (2007) Inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 During Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion of Manure from Dairy Cattle, Water Research, 41:1659-1666.
Singleton, D.R., R. Sangaiah, A. Gold, L.M. Ball, and M.D. Aitken (2006) Identification and Quantification of Uncultivated Proteobacteria Associated with Pyrene Degradation in a Bioreactor Treating PAH-Contaminated Soil, Environmental Microbiology, 8: 1736-1745.
Nappier, S.P., M.D. Aitken and M.D. Sobsey (2006) Male-Specific Coliphages as Indicators of Thermal Inactivation of Pathogens in Biosolids, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 72:2471-2475.
Law, A.M.J. and M.D. Aitken (2006) The Effect of Oxygen on Chemotaxis to Naphthalene by Pseudomonas putida G7, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 93:457-464.
Aitken, M.D., G.W. Walters, P.L. Crunk, J.L. Willis, J.B. Farrell, P.L. Schafer, C. Arnett, and B. Turner (2005) Laboratory Evaluation of Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion to Produce Class A Biosolids. 1. Stabilization Performance of a Continuous-flow Reactor at Low Residence Time, Water Environment Research, 77:3019-3027.
Aitken, M.D., M.D. Sobsey, M. Shehee, K.E. Blauth, V.R. Hill, J.B. Farrell, S.P. Nappier, G.W. Walters, P.L. Crunk, and N. Van Abel (2005) Laboratory Evaluation of Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion to Produce Class A Biosolids. 2. Inactivation of Pathogens and Indicator Organisms in a Continuous-flow Reactor Followed by Batch Treatment, Water Environment Research, 77:3028-3036.
Reardon, R.D., F.A. DiGiano, M.D. Aitken, S.V. Paranjape, J.H. Kim, S.-Y. Chang, and R. Cramer (2005) Membrane Treatment of Secondary Effluents for Subsequent Use (Water Environment Research Foundation Report 01-CTS-6). IWA Publishing: London, UK, 530 pp.
Aitken, M.D., M.D. Sobsey, K.E. Blauth, M. Shehee, P.L. Crunk and G. W. Walters (2005) Inactivation of Ascaris suum and Poliovirus in Biosolids Under Thermophilic Anaerobic Digestion Conditions, Environmental Science and Technology, 39:5804-5809. Electronic reprint
Law, A.M.J. and M.D. Aitken (2005) A Continuous-flow Capillary Assay for Measuring Bacterial Chemotaxis, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 71:3137-3143.
Singleton, D.R., S.N. Powell, R. Sangaiah, A. Gold, L.M. Ball and M.D. Aitken (2005) Stable-isotope Probing of Bacteria Capable of Degrading Salicylate, Naphthalene or Phenanthrene in a Bioreactor Treating Contaminated Soil, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 71:1202-1209.
Zielinska-Park, J., J. Nakamura, J.A. Swenberg and M.D. Aitken (2004) Aldehydic DNA Lesions in Calf Thymus DNA and HeLa S3 Cells Produced by Bacterial Quinone Metabolites of Fluoranthene and Pyrene, Carcinogenesis, 25:1727-1733.
Aitken, M.D. and T.C. Long (2004) Biotransformation, Biodegradation and Bioremediation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, pp.83-124 in Soil Biology, Volume 2: Biodegradation and Bioremediation, ed. A. Singh and O.P Ward, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, Germany.
Aitken, M.D., J.T. Novak, G.W. Characklis, K.L. Jones and P.J. Vikesland (2004) The Evolution of Environmental Engineering as a Professional Discipline, Environmental Engineering Science, 21:117-123.
Law, A.M.J. and M.D. Aitken (2003) Bacterial Chemotaxis to Naphthalene Desorbing from a Nonaqueous Liquid, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 69:5968-5973.
Pedit, J.A., R.B. Marx, C.T. Miller and M.D. Aitken (2002) Quantitative Analysis of Experiments on Bacterial Chemotaxis to Naphthalene, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 78:626-634.
Kazunga, C., M.D. Aitken, A. Gold and R. Sangaiah (2001) Fluoranthene-2,3- and -1,5-diones are Novel Products from the Bacterial Transformation of Fluoranthene, Environmental Science and Technology, 35:917-922. Electronic reprint
Walters, G.W. and M.D. Aitken (2001) Surfactant-enhanced Solubilization and Anaerobic Biodegradation of 1,1,1-Trichloro-2,2-bis-(p-chlorophenyl)-ethane (DDT) in Contaminated Soil, Water Environment Research, 73: 15-23.
Marx, R.B. and M.D. Aitken (2000) Bacterial Chemotaxis Enhances the Biodegradation of Naphthalene in a Heterogeneous Aqueous System, Environmental Science and Technology, 34:3379-3383. Electronic reprint
Kazunga, C. and M.D. Aitken (2000) Products from the Incomplete Metabolism of Pyrene by Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon-degrading Bacteria, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 66:1917-1922.
Marx, R.B. and M.D. Aitken (2000) A Material-balance Approach for Modeling Bacterial Chemotaxis to a Consumable Substrate in the Capillary Assay, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 68:308-315.
Marx, R.B. and M.D. Aitken (1999) Quantification of Chemotaxis to Naphthalene by Pseudomonas putida G7, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 65: 2847-2852.
Kazunga, C., M.D. Aitken and A. Gold (1999) Primary Product of the Horseradish Peroxidase-catalyzed Oxidation of Pentachlorophenol, Environmental Science and Technology, 33:1408-1412. Electronic reprint
Chen, S.H. and M.D. Aitken (1999) Salicylate Stimulates the Biodegradation of High-molecular Weight Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons by Pseudomonas saccharophila P15, Environmental Science and Technology, 33:435-439. Electronic reprint
Teaching and learning at the graduate level is a two-way process, a great deal of which occurs outside the classroom; I have learned much from my students and colleagues over the years. Organizing knowledge for presentation and discussion in the classroom is only one of the ways we provide opportunities for learning. The dedicated student will find and take advantage of the myriad other opportunities available at this exceptional institution and in the region.
Every spring I offer a three-credit course, ENVR 710, Environmental Process Biotechnology, which covers the key concepts and applications of biological processes used in many situations of interest in environmental engineering practice. Although the fundamental concepts are the same each year, in alternating years I focus on either wastewater treatment applications of biological processes (even years) or on biodegradation and bioremediation of hazardous chemicals (odd years). More information is available on the course web site.
Superimposed on ENVR 710 is a one-credit readings class on environmental process biotechnology, which alternates focus each year as in the three-credit course. The readings class meets once a week with the ENVR 710 class to discuss an assigned reading from the current literature.
The following students and post-docs are working on or have just completed one of the research projects listed above. Students with email links have agreed to reply to inquiries about their research or to more general questions about the department.
You can also see former students' PhD dissertation topics or master's technical report or thesis topics.
Michael D. Aitken
Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
CB #7431
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7431
Phone: (919) 966-1024
Fax: (919) 966-7911
email: mike_aitken@unc.edu
For information on academic and research programs in the department, application information and other general information about the department, please see the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering site listed below.
Last updated 1/08