في إطار النشاط العلمي والبحثي لقسم الأحياء بكلية العلوم، أقام القسم ندوة علمية بعنوان:
Microbial Biomining of Precious Metals (Au, Ag, Pt) from Ores & E-wastes: Mechanisms, Applications & Challenges
قدمتها سعادة الدكتورة / سهام موسى، أستاذ مشارك بقسم الأحياء، وذلك يوم الإثنين الموافق 21 – سبتمبر -2026 الموافق 10 ربيع الآخر 1448 في تمام الساعة 1:00 مساءاً
وقد تناولت الندوة العلمية ما يلي:
The growing demand for precious and critical metals, coupled with the depletion of high-grade mineral reserves, has increased interest in microbial biomining as a sustainable alternative for metal recovery from primary ores and secondary resources. Biomining is a microorganism-assisted process in which microbial activities promote the mobilization, dissolution, and recovery of metals from mineral matrices. In ore biomining, microorganisms interact with crushed or ground ores through direct and indirect mechanisms. Acidophilic chemolithotrophs, particularly Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, A. thiooxidans, Leptospirillum ferriphilum, and Sulfobacillus spp., oxidize ferrous iron and reduced sulfur compounds, generating ferric iron and sulfuric acid that attack sulfide minerals and expose occluded metals, particularly gold. Cyanogenic bacteria such as Chromobacterium violaceum and Pseudomonas spp. can further mobilize gold and other precious metals through biocyanidation and metal-cyanide complex formation, whereas fungi such as Aspergillus niger promote metal solubilization through organic-acid production. These microbial mechanisms, including bio-oxidation, acidolysis, biocyanidation, biosorption, and bioaccumulation, also provide opportunities for recovering valuable metals from waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), a metal-rich secondary resource containing Au, Ag, Pt, and Pd. Compared with conventional pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical routes, microbial biomining offers lower energy requirements, reduced chemical consumption, milder operating conditions, and lower environmental impacts, while enabling the treatment of low-grade and complex resources. However, commercial implementation remains challenging because of slow leaching kinetics, metal toxicity, variable feedstock composition, high-pulp-density limitations, and difficulties in process control and scale-up. Recent advances in microbial adaptation and engineering, mixed microbial consortia, spent-medium bioleaching, process optimization, and bioreactor design are improving microbial tolerance and metal recovery efficiency. Overall, microbial biomining represents a promising component of sustainable metal production and urban mining, contributing to resource conservation, waste valorization, and the development of a circular economy.
حيث استعرضت الدكتورة أبرز المحاور والنتائج ذات الصلة بالموضوع مقدمةً طرحاً علمياً قيّماً أثار نقاشاً مثمراً بين أعضاء هيئة التدريس والطلاب الحاضرين.
وتأتي هذه الندوة ضمن سلسلة الأنشطة العلمية التي يحرص قسم الأحياءعلى تنظيمها بشكل دوري وذلك في إطار تعزيز النشاط البحثي والأكاديمي بالقسم وحرصاً على إتاحة الفرصة للتفاعل العلمي وتبادل الخبرات والمعارف بين أعضاء هيئة التدريس والباحثين وطلاب الدراسات العليا بالقسم.
