Microbial profiling of amended and unamended bauxite residue samples
Breaking critical barriers in soil formation of bauxite residues. Conventional methods of bauxite residue rehabilitation require expensive and unsustainable covering topsoil. Building on recent breakthroughs in eco-engineering tailings into soil, the project aims to develop a field-based technology using marine microbes and halophytic plants to accelerate in-situ soil formation from bauxite residues (including seawater neutralised bauxite residues) under field conditions. The technology will be underpinned by understanding the roles of marine microbe consortia and eco-engineering inputs in accelerating key mineralogical, geochemical, physical and biological changes in bauxite residues. This technology is expected to be transferable and adaptable across other alumina refineries in Australia. In particular, this project aims to establish breakthrough technology for neutralising bauxite refinery wastes by creating new knowledge about the taxonomic composition and molecular metabolism of haloalkaliphilic sulphur oxidising bacteria capable of oxidising low-cost element sulphur in extremely haloalkaline niches.