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  4. Combining Fluidic Devices with Microscopy and Flow Cytometry to Study Microbial Transport in Porous Media Across Spatial Scales
 
research article

Combining Fluidic Devices with Microscopy and Flow Cytometry to Study Microbial Transport in Porous Media Across Spatial Scales

Scheidweiler, David  
•
De Anna, Pietro
•
Battin, Tom Ian  
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November 25, 2020
Journal of Visualized Experiments

Understanding the transport, dispersion and deposition of microorganisms in porous media is a complex scientific task comprising topics as diverse as hydrodynamics, ecology and environmental engineering. Modeling bacterial transport in porous environments at different spatial scales is critical to better predict the consequences of bacterial transport, yet current models often fail to up-scale from laboratory to field conditions. Here, we introduce experimental tools to study bacterial transport in porous media at two spatial scales. The aim of these tools is to obtain macroscopic observables (such as breakthrough curves or deposition profiles) of bacteria injected into transparent porous matrices. At the small scale (10-1000 µm), microfluidic devices are combined with optical video-microscopy and image processing to obtain breakthrough curves and, at the same time, to track individual bacterial cells at the pore scale. At larger scale, flow cytometry is combined with a self-made robotic dispenser to obtain breakthrough curves. We illustrate the utility of these tools to better understand how bacteria are transported in complex porous media such as the hyporheic zone of streams. As these tools provide simultaneous measurements across scales, they pave the way for mechanism-based models, critically important for upscaling. Application of these tools may not only contribute to the development of novel bioremediation applications but also shed new light on the ecological strategies of microorganisms colonizing porous substrates.

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Type
research article
DOI
10.3791/60701
Author(s)
Scheidweiler, David  
De Anna, Pietro
Battin, Tom Ian  
Peter, Hannes Markus  
Date Issued

2020-11-25

Published in
Journal of Visualized Experiments
Issue

165

Article Number

e60701

Subjects

microbial biofilms

•

microfluidics

•

transport

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
RIVER  
Available on Infoscience
November 26, 2020
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/173660
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