Metal Solubilization by Microorganisms from a Technological and Environmental Perspective
A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Mineralogy and Biogeochemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2023) | Viewed by 6154
Special Issue Editors
Interests: biomining; bioremediation; extremophiles; acid mine drainage; biotechnology in general
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: bioleaching; biomining; metal recovery; extremophiles; biofilms
2. Department of Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 8320000, Chile
Interests: biofilm formation of bioleaching microorganisms; fluorescence microscopy, massive image analyses and OMICS techniques; microbial genetics and extracellular polymeric substances analysis and characterization; characterization of interactions and cell–cell communication in bioleaching consortia; changes in microbial diversity during bioleaching of chalcopyrite-containing ores; EPS production and analysis and development of methodologies for massive image analysis of biofilms of axenic and mixed bioleaching microbial consortia on pyrite and chalcopyrite surfaces
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The consumption of metals in the world is continuously increasing to support the requirements of our modern society. As a result, new technologies are needed to recover metals even from ore reserves with metal grades that do not allow the use of traditional technologies. Numerous chemolithotrophic microorganisms, ubiquitous in mining environments, are capable of catalyzing the solubilization of metals from metal sulfides. This ability of bioleaching microorganisms is the basis of the well-known bioleaching and biooxidation processes that are applied commercially in the recovery of some metals. Bioleaching could also be applied to huge amounts of mining wastes but also from many other sources (electronic wastes, depleted batteries and devices, metal-contaminated sediments and materials, etc.) that still present a high metal load that could be recovered allowing them to be dispersed in the environment with little or no environmental impact. However, this same microbial action, when it occurs under uncontrolled environmental conditions, significantly increases the formation of acid mine drainage in active or abandoned mines; in this case, it is essential to control or prevent microbial participation to avoid a significant environmental impact.
In this special issue, we invite original papers on different aspects of the solubilization of metals by microbial action from a technological perspective, oriented to the recovery of metals from primary or secondary sources and also from an environmental perspective including different aspects on the generation and/or inhibition of acid drainage with microbial contribution. The knowledge of bioleaching microorganisms, their natural microbial niches as well as the interaction between microorganisms and minerals or materials with metal content, are relevant to improve the efficiency of biosolubilization processes to recover metals but also to generate alternatives to prevent the generation of acid drainage; therefore, advances on these fields will also be of interest for this Special Issue.
Dr. Edgardo Rubén Donati
Dr. Camila Castro
Dr. Mario Vera
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- Metal biosolubilization
- Bioleaching
- Biooxidation
- Acid mine drainage
- Bioremediation
- Bioleaching microorganisms
- Biodiversity
- Microbial resistance
- Metal-microorganism interaction
- Tailings treatment
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.