Dr Jan Dolfing

Assistant Professor

Department: Mechanical and Construction Engineering

I graduated with degrees in Environmental Engineering and Environmental Microbiology from Wageningen University in The Netherlands, where I was inspired by two great scientists, Gatze Lettinga and Alexander J.B. Zehnder. They not only taught me that the future is anaerobic but also instilled the notion that in microbial ecosystems the whole is more than the sum of its parts, and that thermodynamics offers an insightful perspective on their intricacies. Thus equipped it only came natural to hypothesize and subsequently prove - as a postdoc with James M. Tiedje at Michigan State - that microorganisms can thrive on organohalide respiration.

Thermodynamics and environmental biotechnology have been the central themes in my research ever since, with a recent focus on anaerobic wastewater treatment at the low winter temperatures prevailing in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Bioelectrochemical systems are an integral part of these endeavours: There is lots of energy in wastewater that we could and should harness.

Email Jan

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Growth Characteristics and Thermodynamics of Syntrophic Acetate Oxidizers, Westerholm, M., Dolfing, J., Schnürer, A. 7 May 2019, In: Environmental Science and Technology
COD/sulfate ratio does not affect the methane yield and microbial diversity in anaerobic digesters, Cetecioglu, Z., Dolfing, J., Taylor, J., Purdy, K., Eyice, Ö. 15 May 2019, In: Water Research
Determination of the Relationship between the Energy Content of Municipal Wastewater and Its Chemical Oxygen Demand, Dai, Z., Heidrich, E., Dolfing, J., Jarvis, A. 9 Jul 2019, In: Environmental Science and Technology Letters
Metabolic potential of uncultured bacteria and archaea associated with petroleum seepage in deep-sea sediments, Dong, X., Greening, C., Rattray, J., Chakraborty, A., Chuvochina, M., Mayumi, D., Dolfing, J., Li, C., Brooks, J., Bernard, B., Groves, R., Lewis, I., Hubert, C. 1 Dec 2019, In: Nature Communications
Appearance of β-lactam Resistance Genes in Agricultural Soils and Clinical Isolates over the 20th Century, Graham, D., Knapp, C., Christensen, B., McCluskey, S., Dolfing, J. 16 Feb 2016, In: Scientific Reports