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Dominic Aebi and Caitlin Henderson-Toth
March 31, 2011
CHEE 591 Environmental Bioremediation


April 26, 1986
 Reactor #4 at Chernobyl NPP
melts down and explodes

 Cause: human error
▪ Disabled cooling system
during testing




Radioactive
material released
into air, water, soil.
Exclusion Zone
 30 km radius

around Chernobyl


Units
 1 Bq = 1 decay / s
 1 Ci = 3.7 x 1010 Bq






Iodine
Cesium
Strontium
Barium
 Degradation

product of Cs


Plutonium
 Small amounts


Without Intervention
 200 yrs to farm within 30 km radius
 20,000 yrs to inhabit land within 1.5 km radius



Contaminates Water, Food, Soil
 Illegal farming in Exclusion Zone
 Effect on animal life
 Plant workers monitoring sarcophagus



Health Affects






Iodine irradiates thyroid
Strontium causes bone cancer
Cesium mimics potassium
Plutonium can cause lung, liver cancer
Birth defects


Use of Plants, their associated microbes to
accelerate remediation of organic and nonorganic contaminants
 TCE, Hydrocarbons, PCBs




Cost Effective
Option to use native/common plants
 Sunflower
 Poplar
 Reed
Mechanisms






Phytodegradation
Rhizosphere Remediation
Phytostabilization
Phytoextraction
Phytovolotalization
 Evapotranspiration

Figure 2. The phytoremediation mechanisms. Pollutants
may be stabilized or degraded within the rhizosphere,
accumulated or degraded within the plant body, or
transpired into the air .


Chernobyl Cooling Pond 23 km2
 1 km from reactor, dilute contaminant



Small Pond (75 m2)
 9.2x106 Bq 137Cs
 1.4x108 Bq 90Sr



Phytotech Inc. Researchers sampled water
 Over 1000 plants tested
 600 L sample treated
 Conclude sunflowers rapidly/preferentially remove
137Cs/90Sr


Ex Situ
 8 wk old plants
 Placed in 50 L water, for 48 hrs each
 12 days - Removal 90% 137Cs, 80% 90Sr



In Situ





1.0 m2 raft
4-8 weeks floating
24 plants
Anaylsis: 137Cs in roots, 90Sr in shoots
▪ Found that 55 kg dry weight Sunflower could remove all
contaminants
▪ 60 Sunflowers employed for complete remediation


Bad
 Information limited on remediated levels
 “Black Box” approach
▪ Limited understanding of mechanism
▪ No information on uptake of other contaminants

 Pilot study short
▪ Questions as to seasonal variation in 137Cs, 90Sr uptake



Good

 Sunflowers grow naturally in the Ukraine, acclimated,

resist pestilence
 Successful remediation (2nd attempt)
 Valuable bioaccumulation coefficient obtained


Bioaccumulation coefficients determined
 Can calculate sunflower biomass required to

remediate other ponds


After 4-8 wks
 Sunflower accumulate 8x the 137Cs in roots as

other plants
 Shoots contain enough 90Sr to warrant
quarrantine (2.5x106 Bq 90Sr /kg dry biomass)


Dushenkov et. al., Env. Sci. Tech., 1999.



Goals
1. Find an additive to desorb 137Cs from soil
2. Find a plant which bioaccumulates 137Cs
3. Test additive for bioaccumulation stimulation
4. Test nascent bioremediation effectiveness in-

situ



Using Indian Mustard
Improvement measured
 More than control?


Encasement
 Prevents further contamination



Natural Attenuation
 Adsorption/Encasement with minerals
 Very long time period



Capping/Vitrification (ex situ)
 Useful for very high concentrations
 Expensive



Permeable Reactive Multibarriers
 Efficient for removal of radionuclides in groundwater



Chernobyl phytoremediation of WATER
shows excellent promise
Chernobyl phytoremediation of SOIL
hampered by adsorption phenomena
 Has shown minimal but measureable

effectiveness


Phytoremediation
 Versatile, Inexpensive, In situ, Natural



Apply lessons to present day Fukushima NPP
disaster.


Any questions?

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Phytoremediation of radionuclides

  • 1. Dominic Aebi and Caitlin Henderson-Toth March 31, 2011 CHEE 591 Environmental Bioremediation
  • 2.  April 26, 1986  Reactor #4 at Chernobyl NPP melts down and explodes  Cause: human error ▪ Disabled cooling system during testing
  • 3.
  • 4.   Radioactive material released into air, water, soil. Exclusion Zone  30 km radius around Chernobyl  Units  1 Bq = 1 decay / s  1 Ci = 3.7 x 1010 Bq
  • 5.
  • 7.
  • 8.  Without Intervention  200 yrs to farm within 30 km radius  20,000 yrs to inhabit land within 1.5 km radius  Contaminates Water, Food, Soil  Illegal farming in Exclusion Zone  Effect on animal life  Plant workers monitoring sarcophagus  Health Affects      Iodine irradiates thyroid Strontium causes bone cancer Cesium mimics potassium Plutonium can cause lung, liver cancer Birth defects
  • 9.  Use of Plants, their associated microbes to accelerate remediation of organic and nonorganic contaminants  TCE, Hydrocarbons, PCBs   Cost Effective Option to use native/common plants  Sunflower  Poplar  Reed
  • 10. Mechanisms      Phytodegradation Rhizosphere Remediation Phytostabilization Phytoextraction Phytovolotalization  Evapotranspiration Figure 2. The phytoremediation mechanisms. Pollutants may be stabilized or degraded within the rhizosphere, accumulated or degraded within the plant body, or transpired into the air .
  • 11.
  • 12.  Chernobyl Cooling Pond 23 km2  1 km from reactor, dilute contaminant  Small Pond (75 m2)  9.2x106 Bq 137Cs  1.4x108 Bq 90Sr  Phytotech Inc. Researchers sampled water  Over 1000 plants tested  600 L sample treated  Conclude sunflowers rapidly/preferentially remove 137Cs/90Sr
  • 13.  Ex Situ  8 wk old plants  Placed in 50 L water, for 48 hrs each  12 days - Removal 90% 137Cs, 80% 90Sr  In Situ     1.0 m2 raft 4-8 weeks floating 24 plants Anaylsis: 137Cs in roots, 90Sr in shoots ▪ Found that 55 kg dry weight Sunflower could remove all contaminants ▪ 60 Sunflowers employed for complete remediation
  • 14.  Bad  Information limited on remediated levels  “Black Box” approach ▪ Limited understanding of mechanism ▪ No information on uptake of other contaminants  Pilot study short ▪ Questions as to seasonal variation in 137Cs, 90Sr uptake  Good  Sunflowers grow naturally in the Ukraine, acclimated, resist pestilence  Successful remediation (2nd attempt)  Valuable bioaccumulation coefficient obtained
  • 15.  Bioaccumulation coefficients determined  Can calculate sunflower biomass required to remediate other ponds  After 4-8 wks  Sunflower accumulate 8x the 137Cs in roots as other plants  Shoots contain enough 90Sr to warrant quarrantine (2.5x106 Bq 90Sr /kg dry biomass)
  • 16.
  • 17.  Dushenkov et. al., Env. Sci. Tech., 1999.  Goals 1. Find an additive to desorb 137Cs from soil 2. Find a plant which bioaccumulates 137Cs 3. Test additive for bioaccumulation stimulation 4. Test nascent bioremediation effectiveness in- situ
  • 18.
  • 19.
  • 20.
  • 21.   Using Indian Mustard Improvement measured  More than control?
  • 22.  Encasement  Prevents further contamination  Natural Attenuation  Adsorption/Encasement with minerals  Very long time period  Capping/Vitrification (ex situ)  Useful for very high concentrations  Expensive  Permeable Reactive Multibarriers  Efficient for removal of radionuclides in groundwater
  • 23.   Chernobyl phytoremediation of WATER shows excellent promise Chernobyl phytoremediation of SOIL hampered by adsorption phenomena  Has shown minimal but measureable effectiveness  Phytoremediation  Versatile, Inexpensive, In situ, Natural  Apply lessons to present day Fukushima NPP disaster.

Editor's Notes

  1. Figure from 1996
  2. Figure from Medvedev et al
  3. Figure from Dushenkov et al 1999
  4. Source: Dushenkove et al
  5. Figure from Dushenkov et al