The physical interactions of growing bacterial cells with each other and with their surroundings significantly affect the structure and dynamics of biofilms. Here a 3D agent-based model is formulated to describe the establishment of simple bacterial colonies expanding by the physical force of their growth. With a single set of parameters, the model captures key dynamical features of colony growth by non-motile, non EPS-producing E. coli cells on hard agar. The model, supported by experiment on colony growth in different types and concentrations of nutrients, suggests that radial colony expansion is not limited by nutrients as commonly believed, but by mechanical forces. Nutrient penetration instead governs vertical colony growth, through thin layers of vertically oriented cells lifting up their ancestors from the bottom. Overall, the model provides a versatile platform to investigate the influences of metabolic and environmental factors on the growth and morphology of bacterial colonies.

Catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) of biomass-derived furfural (FAL) to furfuryl alcohol is recognized as one of the most versatile techniques for biomass valorization. However, the irreversible sintering of metal sites under the high-temperature reaction or during the coke removal regeneration process poses a serious concern. Herein, we present a silicalite-1-confined ultrasmall CuO structure (CuO@silicalite-1) and then compared its catalytic efficiency against conventional surface-supported CuO structure (CuO/silicalite-1) toward CTF of FAL with alcohols. Characterization results revealed that CuO nanoparticles encapsulated within the silicalite-1 matrix are ∼1.3 nm in size in CuO@silicalite-1, exhibiting better dispersion as compared to that in the CuO/silicalite-1. The CuO@silicalite-1, as a result, exhibited nearly 100-fold higher Cu-mass-based activity than the CuO/silicalite-1 counterpart. More importantly, the activity of the CuO@silicalite-1 catalyst can be regenerated via facile calcination to remove the surface-bound carbon deposits, unlike the CuO/silicalite-1 that suffered severe deactivation after use and cannot be effectively regenerated.