Safer way to rid toxic waste

QUEENSLAND UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

The new technology can remove radioactive material from contaminated water and aid clean-up efforts following nuclear disasters. Image: moorsky/iStockphoto Queensland University of Technology (QUT) researchers have developed new technology capable of removing radioactive material from contaminated water and aiding clean-up efforts following nuclear disasters. The innovation could also solve the problem of how to clean up millions of tonnes of water contaminated by dangerous radioactive material and safely store the concentrated waste. Professor Huai-Yong Zhu from QUT Chemistry said the world-first intelligent absorbent, which uses titanate nanofibre and nanotube technology, differed from current clean-up methods, such as layered clays and zeolites, because it could efficiently lock in deadly radioactive material from contaminated water. The used absorbents can then be safely disposed without the risk of leakage, even if the material became wet. "One gram of the nanofibres can effectively purify at least one tonne of polluted water," Professor Zhu said. "This saves large amounts of dangerous water needing to be stored somewhere and also prevents the risk of contaminated products leaking into the soil." The technology, which was developed in collaboration with the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and Pennsylvania State University in America, works by running the contaminated water through the fine nanotubes and fibres, which trap the radioactive Cesium (Cs+) ions through a structural change. "Every year we hear of at least one nuclear accident. Not only is there a risk of contamination where human error is concerned, but there is also a risk from natural disasters such as what we saw in Japan this year," he said. Professor Zhu and his research team believed the technology would also benefit industries as diverse as mining and medicine. By adding silver oxide nanocrystals to the outer surface, the nanostructures are able to capture and immobilise radioactive iodine (I-) ions used in treatments for thyroid cancer, in probes and markers for medical diagnosis, as well as found in leaks of nuclear accidents. "It is our view that just taking the radioactive material in the adsorbents isn't good enough. We should make it safe before disposing it," he said. "The same goes for Australian sites where we mine nuclear products. We need a solution before we have a problem, rather than looking for fixes when it could be too late." With a growing need to find alternatives to meet global energy needs, Professor Zhu said now was the time to put safeguards in place. "In France, 75 per cent of electricity is produced by nuclear power and in Belgium, which has a population of 10 million people there are six nuclear power stations," he said. "Even if we decide that nuclear energy is not the way we want to go, we will still need to clean-up what's been produced so far and store it safely," he said. "Australia is one of the largest producers of titania that are the raw materials used for fabricating the absorbents of titanate nanofibres and nanotubes. Now with the knowledge to produce the adsorbents, we have the technology to do the cleaning up for the world." Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.

Billion year old bacteria created

THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO

“The billion-year-old enzyme is from a Precambrian ancestor of a modern bacterium called Bacillus.” Image: Eraxion/iStockphoto University of Waikato researchers have managed to create a billion-year-old bacterial enzyme and then trace its evolution through history, to the modern day. Associate Professor Vic Arcus and postdoctoral research scientist Dr Jo Hobbs have used new computational techniques to make accurate predictions about the size, shape and composition of proteins from ancient bacteria. They then coaxed modern bacteria into making these ancient proteins for them, creating a billion-year-old Bacillus bacteria enzyme. “We’ve been able to make a billion-year-old protein enzyme that actually works in the lab,” says researcher Jo Hobbs. “The billion-year-old enzyme is from a Precambrian ancestor of a modern bacterium called Bacillus,” explains Dr Arcus. “To our surprise, the ancient enzyme is very stable at high temperatures and very, very active - seven times more active than a comparable modern enzyme.” “This means that the Bacillus ancestor most probably lived in a hot, inhospitable environment a billion years ago.” Tracing Evolution Along with the billion-year-old enzyme, the team created enzymes that trace the evolution of the organisms from one billion years ago to the present day. They tested the optimal operating temperature of each enzyme to get an insight into the changing temperate of the environment of the bacteria over time. “The optimum temperature of the billion-year-old organism is 70 degrees. But during the evolution of these bacteria, they have adapted to cooling temperatures. Today we find Bacillus bacteria in nearly every possible environment – hot pools, garden soil, cool lakes, even in Antarctica,” says Dr Arcus. “They are the weeds of the bacterial world. Their ability to adapt to a great range of different environments over such long periods of time has been their success on planet Earth.” The team have had their findings published in the Journal of Molecular Biology and Evolution. Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here.

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