The
unique bacteria, discovered in a nuclear waste storage site in
Siberia, shows promise as a tool for the creation of a natural
barrier to the spread of radionuclides.
Researchers
from the Moscow-based Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and the
Russian Academy of Sciences' Federal Research Center for
Biotechnology have been able to isolate microorganisms which can be
used to safeguard the surrounding environment from liquid radioactive
waste.
Scientists
made the discovery while conducting microbiological studies of the
groundwater at the Seversky deep radiation burial site in Seversk,
Tomsk region, Siberia, where liquid radioactive waste from the
Siberian Chemical Combine, which supplies and reprocesses low
enriched uranium for nuclear fuel, is stored.
Their
research, recently published in Radioactive Waste, a Russian
scientific journal, suggests that the bacteria is capable of
converting radionuclide ions, including those found in uranium and
plutonium, into sedentary forms, thereby preventing the spread of
dangerous radiation into the surrounding environment. Through lab
experimentation, the scientists were able to fine tune the conditions
necessary for the bacteria to carry out its useful work.
The
researchers say their findings are a first step in creation a
biogeochemical barrier for radionuclides for use in deep burial sites
containing liquid radioactive waste.
Research
into microbiological tools to limit the effects of nuclear waste have
been conducted since the 1980s, with scientists from around the world
saying microbial processes must be taken into account in projects to
bury and store nuclear waste which can otherwise decay over a period
of millions or even billions of years.
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