[Last updated: February 17, 2010 ]

Academic Education

B.Sc. Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Chemical Engineering, cum laude, 1995.
Ph.D. Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Agricultural Engineering, Soil and Water, 2003.

Research Interests

Since 1998, Dr. Herzberg has studied bacterial biofilms: both bioremediation with fluidized bed biofilm reactors and biofouling of Reverse Osmosis (RO) membranes were of his major research interests.

In our group, microbial biofilms are being studied from two main aspects: First, since bacterial biofilm formation on RO membranes causes a decrease in permeate flux and in most cases, a decrease in salt rejection, we study both the physico-chemical characteristics and the physiology of the biofouling layer in RO environments. To this end, we link the physico-chemical interaction between the membrane and the biofouling layer with the mechanisms in charge for the decrease in RO membrane performance. Relating to cell physiology, we study the susceptibility of RO biofilms to antibacterial agents and the effects of RO conditions. Also, we are going to elucidate changes in bacterial cell physiology upon inhibition of biofilm growth on modified-surface membranes and we hope to improve anti-biofouling membrane modification strategies.

Other field of our research is emphasized on adhesion and initial attachment of different model bacterial strains to abiotic surfaces. Changes in cell physiology are elucidated using different molecular techniques such as gene expression microarrays and real-time PCR. In general, linking these two research approaches may help us to develop efficient strategies for biofouling control in RO membranes and other engineered systems.