South Dakota State University has been chosen by the National Science Foundation to serve as the leader of the 'BioNitrogen Economy Research Center' (BNERC), a statewide program. The focus of this $7 million, four-year study will be biological nitrogen fixation and how it may be used in sustainable industry and agriculture.
Farming and Nitrogen
SDSU will partner with Oglala Lakota College, South Dakota Mines, the University of South Dakota, and Houdek, a Brookings-based fermentation technology business. The project will be directed and primarily investigated by Professor Ruanbao Zhou, who is from the Department of Biology and Microbiology at SDSU.
Biological nitrogen fixation is the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen gas into useful compounds like ammonia. This complex process, which can only be performed by specific bacteria, is important for the growth of plants in soils which lack nitrogen. This mechanism was recognized for the first time in 1901, and experts believe it could provide an eco-friendlier alternative to current nitrogen production methods.
Fossil fuels provide the majority of the nitrogen used in agriculture. Plants can only utlize the nitrogen when it is found in fertilizer that has either nitrate or ammonia. With this initiative it aims to address nitrogen pollution in agricultural areas like South Dakota by developing nitrogen rich biological products like proteins, fertilizers, and bioplastics.
The study will combine Native community knowledge of Indigenous agricultural and medicinal plants. The team will use solar-powered cyanobacteria (photosynthesis-capable bacteria) to create technology and infrastructure for a bio-nitrogen economy.
This project focuses on four primary research domains: examining nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria within natural ecosystems, utilizing machine learning to investigate solar-powered nitrogen fixation mechanisms, creating biofuels and value-added nitrogen products, and genetically modifying nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria as a preliminary step in developing nitrogen-fixing crops.
The project will also include a component dedicated to workforce development, which will involve K-12 outreach, research programs for undergraduates and graduates, and collaborations with tribal communities.
