title: A concise review of nanoscopic aspects of bioleaching bacteria-mineral interactions.
abstract: Bioleaching is a technology for the recovery of metals from minerals by means of microorganisms, which accelerate the oxidative dissolution of the mineral by regenerating ferric ions. Bioleaching processes take place at the interface of bacteria, sulfide mineral and leaching solution. The fundamental forces between a bioleaching bacterium and mineral surface are central to understanding the intricacies of interfacial phenomena, such as bacterial adhesion or detachment from minerals and the mineral dissolution. This review focuses on the current state of knowledge in the colloidal aspect of bacteria-mineral interactions, particularly for bioleaching bacteria. Special consideration is given to the microscopic structure of bacterial cells and the atomic force microscopy technique used in the quantification of fundamental interaction forces at nanoscale.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Mengxue
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Diao
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Taran
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia; Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mahler
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia. Electronic address: anh.nguyen@eng.uq.edu.au.
authors.forename: Anh V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Nguyen
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism*; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D032701:Biomimetics / Q000379:methods*; D008903:Minerals / Q000378:metabolism*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction
chemical_list: D008903:Minerals
keywords: Atomic force microscopy; Bacterial adhesion; Bioleaching; Interaction forces