Achievement

The potential for positive feedback between microbial methane production and greenhouse gas induced climate change has spurred scientific interest in methanogenesis. However, net positive flux of microbially derived methane is difficult to monitor via traditional methods due to its stochastic nature. The most recent EARS IGERT cohort (lead by Joe Taura and including trainees from Kent State and Miami) will utilize our interdisciplinary expertise to develop novel sensor technology for monitoring long-term aquatic methane concentrations. This technology will be used to document methane fluxes in aquatic ecosystems and, with supporting molecular analyses, be able to attribute methanogenesis to geologic or microbial sources, thereby allowing us to examine links between land-use types and biological methanogenesis. The team has developed two distinct approaches for methane sensors. The team plans to produce one or more patents and publications.