Lutgarde Raskin

I am inspired by the complexity of the microbial world and the remarkable progress achieved in the field of microbial ecology over the past few decades. This progress continually motivates me to rethink engineered systems to better harness the power of microorganisms to treat water and recover resources from waste streams. My research program focuses on understanding and improving the engineered water cycle microbiome to advance human and environmental health through sustainable design approaches. Specifically, my team and I develop and investigate technologies for drinking water treatment and distribution, as well as for recovering resources from waste streams. Current focus areas include:

• Drinking Water Microbiome Management: We are developing approaches to harness beneficial microorganisms while controlling opportunistic pathogens in drinking water systems.
• Resource Recovery from Organic Waste Streams: We are developing anaerobic biotechnologies to convert organic waste into valuable products, such as renewable natural gas and medium-chain carboxylic acids.
• Microbial Ecology in Engineered Systems: We seek to understand the principles governing microbial community assembly and function in engineered environments. This work provides the scientific foundation for designing and controlling biological treatment processes. One example is the use of rumen biomimicry to enhance anaerobic digestion.

• Honorary Doctorate, KU Leuven, Belgium (2025)
• American Society of Civil Engineers Simon W. Freese Environmental Engineering Award (2023)
• Elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering (2021)
• International Water Association Microbial Ecology and Water Engineering Specialist Group Ardern-Lockett Award (2019)
• Civil and Environmental Engineering Distinguished Alumna Award, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2019)
• Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors Distinguished Lecturer (2018-19)
• International Society for Microbial Ecology-International Water Association BioCluster Award (2016)
• Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors Frontier Award in Research (2007)
• American Society of Civil Engineers Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize (2006)
• Water Research Foundation Paul L. Busch Award (2002)

For a full list of publications, visit Prof. Raskin's Google Scholar Profile.

• Dowdell KS, Potgieter SC, Olsen K, Lee S, Vedrin M, Caverly LJ, LiPuma JJ, Raskin L. 2024. Source-to-tap investigation of the occurrence of nontuberculous mycobacteria in a full-scale chloraminated drinking water system. Appl Environ Microbiol 90:e00609-24.
• Fonoll X, Zhu K, Aley L, Shrestha S, Raskin L. Simulating Rumen Conditions Using an Anaerobic Dynamic Membrane Bioreactor to Enhance Hydrolysis of Lignocellulosic Biomass. Environ Sci Technol. 2024 Jan 23;58(3):1741-1751.
• Wu Z, Nguyen D, Shrestha S, Raskin L, Khanal SK, Lee PH. Evaluation of Nanaerobic Digestion as a Mechanism to Explain Surplus Methane Production in Animal Rumina and Engineered Digesters. Environ Sci Technol. 2023 Aug 22;57(33):12302-12314.
• Nyitrai J, Almansa XF, Zhu K, Banerjee S, Hawkins TR, Urgun-Demirtas M, Raskin L, Skerlos SJ. Environmental life cycle assessment of treatment and management strategies for food waste and sewage sludge. Water Res. 2023 Jul 15;240:120078.
• Shrestha S, Xue S, Raskin L. Competitive Reactions during Ethanol Chain Elongation Were Temporarily Suppressed by Increasing Hydrogen Partial Pressure through Methanogenesis Inhibition. Environ Sci Technol. 2023 Feb 28;57(8):3369-3379.
• Shen Y, Haig S, Prussin A, LiPuma J, Marr L, Raskin L. Shower water contributes viable nontuberculous mycobacteria to indoor air. PNAS Nexus. 2022 November; 1(5)
• Hegarty B, Dai Z, Raskin L, Pinto A, Wigginton K, Duhaime M. A snapshot of the global drinking water virome: Diversity and metabolic potential vary with residual disinfectant use. Water Research. 2022 June; 218:118484.
• Shrestha S, Xue S, Kitt D, Song H, Truyers C, Muermans M, Smets I, Raskin L. Anaerobic Dynamic Membrane Bioreactor Development to Facilitate Organic Waste Conversion to Medium-Chain Carboxylic Acids and Their Downstream Recovery. ACS ES&T Engineering. 2021 December 16; 2(2):169-180.
• Dowdell K, Haig S, Caverly L, Shen Y, LiPuma J, Raskin L. Nontuberculous mycobacteria in drinking water systems – the challenges of characterization and risk mitigation. Current Opinion in Biotechnology. 2019 June; 57:127-136.
• Haig S, Kotlarz N, LiPuma J, Raskin L. A High-Throughput Approach for Identification of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria in Drinking Water Reveals Relationship between Water Age and Mycobacterium avium. mBio. 2018 March 07; 9(1).
• Shrestha S, Fonoll X, Khanal SK, Raskin L. Biological strategies for enhanced hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass during anaerobic digestion: Current status and future perspectives. Bioresour Technol. 2017 Dec;245(Pt A):1245-1257.
• Pinto A, Marcus D, Ijaz U, Bautista-de los Santos Q, Dick G, Raskin L. Metagenomic Evidence for the Presence of Comammox Nitrospira -Like Bacteria in a Drinking Water System. mSphere. 2016 February 25; 1(1)  
• Smith AL, Skerlos SJ, Raskin L. Psychrophilic anaerobic membrane bioreactor treatment of domestic wastewater, Water Research. 2013; 47(4):1655-1665.
• Pinto A, Xi C, Raskin L. Bacterial Community Structure in the Drinking Water Microbiome Is Governed by Filtration Processes. Environmental Science & Technology. 2012 July 30; 46(16):8851-8859.