{"id":16116,"date":"2018-02-14T11:12:56","date_gmt":"2018-02-14T16:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/chembe\/?p=16116"},"modified":"2021-12-03T09:10:43","modified_gmt":"2021-12-03T14:10:43","slug":"toward-sustainable-fertilizer","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/chembe\/news\/toward-sustainable-fertilizer\/","title":{"rendered":"Toward more sustainable fertilizer"},"content":{"rendered":"

As fourth-year PhD candidate Michael Manto<\/strong> was completing his bachelor\u2019s degree in chemical engineering at Lehigh University, Johns Hopkins was not on his PhD radar because he mistakenly believed the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering was \u201call bio.\u201d<\/p>\n

Manto\u2019s sister, a Hopkins undergrad at the time, quickly set him straight, filling him in on her own advisor\u2019s energy and sustainability research. The next year, Manto started his doctorate in the same advisor\u2019s lab, where he continues to use nanotechnology to sustainably extract, produce, and recover nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients\u2014the key ingredients in fertilizer\u2014from renewable biomolecular feedstocks and other sources like wastewater.<\/p>\n

Manto, originally from Philadelphia, explains that fertilizer is increasingly necessary because most soil lacks the nutrients to support the massive scale on which many crops are grown today, but that standard fertilizer production methods are expensive and unsustainable. Nitrogen is typically derived from ammonia in an energy-intensive process costing billions a year; phosphorus is derived from phosphate rock, whose supply is finite and non-renewable.<\/p>\n

Manto\u2019s group is investigating \u201cgentle\u201d reaction conditions using cerium oxide nanomaterials in water at room temperature. Such conditions have been explored for phosphorus but only in a limited medical context, and are brand new for nitrogen. Manto\u2019s team also employs zeolites to isolate and recover nitrogen and phosphorus and eventually convert it to fertilizer. Characterization is a challenge in these water-based systems, but Manto believes it\u2019s not insurmountable.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re convincing people in the field that it\u2019s a worthy cause,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

An unusual feature of his research is that it combines two typically separate chemical engineering disciplines: heterogeneous catalysis and ion exchange separations. Developing in-depth knowledge in both areas is already opening doors for Manto, who earned two travel awards to the 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) meeting, and won an award\u2014as well as the opportunity to present his research\u2014for best poster at the 21st<\/sup> Annual Northeast Corridor Zeolite Association (NECZA) Meeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was nice to see that happen,\u201d Manto says. \u201cWe realize we\u2019re developing a new area of expertise that is unfamiliar to other researchers, but many people are noticing, and that\u2019s a great sign.\u201d<\/p>\n

When he completes his degree, Manto hopes to undertake R&D in an industrial setting. He also hopes to continue in the mentoring role he\u2019s taken on in the lab, where he\u2019s supported undergrads as they co-authored papers, won research grants, and presented at conferences. \u201cThey make really positive contributions to our research, and I couldn\u2019t have gotten half of this done without their help,\u201d Manto says. \u201cIt\u2019s rewarding in both directions.\u201d<\/p>\n

His mentees have also been part of the experience Manto most anticipates carrying with him into the future: learning how to lead a team to have the greatest impact on a project. \u201cTo have people working together, that\u2019s the secret of successful research,\u201d he says. \u201cTo have that enthusiasm and collaboration; you can achieve so much when you have a good team.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","class_list":["post-16116","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","news_categories-research"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nToward more sustainable fertilizer - Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/chembe\/news\/toward-sustainable-fertilizer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Toward more sustainable fertilizer - 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