Caitlin Stier, contributor
(Image: Bo C. Christiansen/University of Copenhagen)
A highly reactive form of rust could be used to contain radioactive neptunium waste from nuclear power plants.
Green rust (pictured above) is a type of clay consisting of iron that has not entirely rusted. It has a deficit of electrons, making it react easily with other substances, including common pollutants.
Now, Bo Christiansen of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and colleagues say it can help contain radioactive neptunium, a byproduct of uranium reactors with a half-life of more than 2 million years. The waste is disposed of in iron-lined copper vessels that are submerged in water.
Christiansen and colleagues say that surrounding these vessels with green rust could help ensure the waste does not seep into waterways should the containers break down.
Journal reference: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, DOI: 10.1016/j.gca.2010.12.003
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