Russian scientists have discovered that the plant biomass of Heracleum sosnowskyi can be successfully used to create sorbents that purify water from radionuclides. The research results, supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (RSF), have been published in the journal Carbon Resources Conversion.
The nuclear industry is one of the most reliable and efficient ways to generate energy. However, radionuclides, i.e. radioactive elements formed in the process of nuclear reactions, leak into the environment and lead to its pollution. This can occur as a result of human activity (fertilization of agricultural land, heavy industry, development of natural resources, storage of radioactive waste, radiation emissions from nuclear power plants) or natural causes, i.e. radioactive radiation from elements of the earth's crust, gamma radiation from space.
Thus, uranium, one of the most common long-lived radionuclides, gets into the soil, accumulates in it, contaminates ground and surface waters and, dissolving in them, spreads through lakes, rivers and seas. In addition, radionuclides can enter living organisms, including humans, which can cause damage to vital organs and cancer. Therefore, experts are looking for an effective method of purifying water from radionuclides.
Scientists from the Federal Research Center "Komi Scientific Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences" (Syktyvkar), the Scientific Research Institute of Synthetic Rubber named after Academician S. Lebedev (St. Petersburg) and the Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after A. M. Lomonosov (Arkhangelsk) created nanocarbon adsorbents capable of absorbing radioactive elements from liquid media and retaining them.
As raw materials, the researchers used Heracleum sosnowskyi biomass, natural lignin, a polymer compound contained in the cells of land plants, and technical lignin, which is a by-product of deep chemical wood processing.
Initially, borscht was brought to Central Europe for livestock feed, but the plant filled all the free spaces along roads and forests, destroying the local flora. Moreover, it turned out to be dangerous for humans. Hogweed stems and pollen contain poisonous compounds, i.e. furanocoumarins, which cause burns, blindness and damage to the respiratory system. The use of this plant as a raw material for nanomaterials will help to partially reduce its distribution.
The authors obtained a porous sorption material from a mixture of starting powders of plant biopolymers with the addition of an oxidizing agent, using the latest technology of self-expanding high-temperature synthesis, i.e. they synthesized a filter material, which was given a porous structure by treatment with nitrogen compounds and cooling.
Experiments have shown that the new nanocarbon adsorbent retains uranium well. Thus, about 70% of these radionuclides are not washed out either by water or other solvents. The researchers also discovered that such a material is able to adsorb mycotoxin T-2, a waste product of mold fungi that can accumulate in cereals, fruits, vegetables, nuts and cause serious diseases.
"The results of our research confirm that nanocarbon materials obtained from hogweed stems can be used as preparations adsorbing harmful elements, which will help maintain human health in conditions of chronic exposure to radiation, e.g. at orbital stations and radioactively contaminated areas. We plan to continue the study of lignins obtained from plant biomass in order to create drugs that improve the quality of human life,” says the project leader, supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation, Lyudmila Kocheva, doctor of chemistry, leading scientist at the Federal Research Center “Science Center of the Komi Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences”.
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