This project focused on the bioaugmentation in nitroaromatics-contaminated soils with several nitroaromatics degrading strains. Bioremediation of nitroaromatic compounds, such as chloronitrobenzene, nitrobenzene and etc., will be conducted in situ by inoculating their degraders in the contaminated-soils. The degradation of corresponding compounds by bioaugmentation will be closely monitored. Meanwhile, the microbial ecological analyses will also be performed, by both conversional and molecular approaches, to determine the changing of indigenous microbial community during the process of bioaugmentation. This project will contribute greatly to the understanding of bioremediation of the pollutants concerned in the environments and its ecological impact, at fundamental and applied aspects. The expertise gained from this project may also lead the field application to clean up contaminated soils with microbial agents prepared from these degraders.

The bioremediation results of chloronitrobenzene, nitrobenzene and other nitroaromatics in the soils by adding their degraders will facilitate us to explore the potential application for the bioaugmentation in the soil through the microbial agents prepared with nitroaromatics degraders. Its ecological impact on the indigenous microbial diversity will enable us to understand the community change occurred during the bioremediation process. Meanwhile, to establish a set of the general biochemical, molecular and ecological methods for the evaluations of the bioaugmentation and the ecological impact is certainly another goal of this project.  A total of 6-8 research papers from the results of this project are aiming to publish in peer-reviewed international journals, and 3-5 core techniques devolved from this project are expected to be patented.