Bioremediation of Uranium from nuclear waste using cyanobacteria

Abstract

Regulations from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) state that handling radioactive waste is a worldwide undertaking and that methods that have been scientifically confirmed must be used at every stage of the process. The extent of contamination associated with 60 years of global nuclear activity and the inherent high financial and environmental costs associated with invasive physical and chemical clean-up strategies have sparked unprecedented interest in new passive in situ bioremediation processes for nuclear wastecontaminated sites. The purpose of this project is to use cyanobacteria to remove uranium from nuclear waste solution. Cyanobacteria possess the ability to react to harmful metals in order to reduce or eliminate the metal's toxicity. Metal mobility can change as a result of several mechanisms, which alter metal speciation. These methods include the production of metal-binding proteins such as metallothioneins, organic or inorganic precipitation, intracellular compartmentalization, extracellular sequestration, and active transport. Certain detoxifying methods of metal pollutants are facilitated by cyanobacteria. Anabena dolionumfared better than the other chemical and biological options that were looked at when it came to high uranium loading values as it reduced uranium with percentages ranging from 32%-80%. This study has revealed that two fresh water cyanobacteria, Anabena dolionum and Anabena cycade, have a notable ability to sequester uranyl from water. The efficiency of cyanobacteria as metal adsorbents is well-known.