Environment - Putting seashells to work

Millions of seashells off the coast of Japan may be able to play a role in cleaning up radioactive cesium that was dumped into the ocean after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Japan. Researchers from Japan used the NOMAD instrument at the Spallation Neutron Source to study ground seashells, which, when treated, have shown a remarkable ability to adsorb cesium in water. Adsorption involves the surface retention of solid or gas molecules, atoms or ions by a solid or liquid. Researchers compared the adsorption properties of the treated seashells with the identical synthetic compound. They found the latter did not adsorb cesium at all. Understanding what is different at the atomic level between these two essentially similar compounds may lead to improving the ability of treated seashells to cleanse the water. - Agatha Bardoel, 865.574.0644, May 02, 2012