Solar-powered ‘artificial plant’ purifies radioactive soil by 95% in 20 days
A research team has successfully developed and tested a solar-powered artificial plant that can rapidly purify soil contaminated with radioactive cesium.
The innovative device, which mimics a plant’s natural transpiration process, reduced cesium concentration in soil by over 95% in just 20 days. This offers a groundbreaking solution for cleaning up nuclear accident sites and contaminated agricultural land.
“This study holds significance as it demonstrates the possibility of purifying contaminated soil based on solar energy by mimicking natural plants and simply installing the device without any other equipment,” said Seongkyun Kim, who led the research, from the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology (DGIST).
A long-term environmental, health challenges
Radioactive cesium, particularly the isotope Cesium-137, presents a long-term environmental and health challenge due to its half-life of about 30 years. It is highly soluble in water, which allows it to spread easily through ecosystems and be taken up by plants and animals.
“Once it enters the body, it can build up in muscles and bones and cause cancer or organ damage,” explained the researchers in a press release.
Events like the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan led to widespread cesium contamination, prompting concerns over the safety of agricultural products and seafood.
“While contaminated water can be purified with an adsorbent, it is a global challenge to purify soil as there is no alternative to scooping up and purifying the soil,” added the press release.
Cleaning contaminated soil
Until now, cleaning contaminated soil has been a significant hurdle. The primary method involved physically scooping up the soil for treatment, an invasive and costly process.
While using natural plants to absorb contaminants has been explored, it’s a slow process, heavily dependent on weather, and the contaminated plants themselves become radioactive waste.
“While radioactive cesium contamination causes a much more serious problem in soil than in water, there has been no proper method to purify it so far,” said Professor Kim.
The device developed by Professor Kim’s team addresses these limitations. It is designed to be installed directly into the contaminated ground. Powered by sunlight, it draws up contaminated water from the soil through a stem-like structure.
This water then passes into the “leaves” of the device, where a specific adsorbent material captures the radioactive cesium ions.
“Pure water evaporates, and the evaporated water returns to the soil through the recovery system. Therefore, it is not necessary to replenish the water,” highlighted the press release.
Practical, reusable solution
The device is reusable. Once the leaves are saturated with cesium, they can be easily replaced.
“Furthermore, an acidic substance can be used to wash the used leaves to take the cesium out, and the adsorbent can be recycled multiple times, which reduces costs and the environmental burden,” added the researchers.
Experiments showed the technology is highly effective, drastically speeding up a process that would typically take many months.
Because the device is powered entirely by the sun and doesn’t require electricity or an external water source, it is ideal for on-site application at remote accident sites or farmland.
The technology represents a major step forward in our ability to restore environments affected by radioactive contamination.
Source: Interesting Engineering
Scientists Create Clear Coating To Invisibly Turn Windows Into Solar Panels
Solar-powered ‘artificial plant’ purifies radioactive soil by 95% in 20 days