Fly Ash as a Potential Adsorbent for Removing Radionuclides from Aqueous Solutions in an Adsorption-Membrane Assisted Process Compared to Batch Adsorption.

The paper deals with checking the possibility of using fly ash (FA) as a sorbent in the batch adsorption method of removing radionuclides from aqueous solutions. An adsorption-membrane filtration (AMF) hybrid process with a polyether sulfone ultrafiltration membrane with a pore size of 0.22 µm was also tested as an alternative to the commonly used column-mode technology. In the AMF method, metal ions are bound by the water-insoluble species prior to the membrane filtration of the purified water. Thanks to the easy separation of the metal-loaded sorbent, it is possible to improve water purification parameters using compact installations and reduce operating costs. This work evaluated the influence of such parameters on cationic radionuclide removal efficiency (EM): initial pH and composition of the solution, contact time of the phases, and the FA doses. A method for removing radionuclides, ordinarily present in an anionic form (e.g., TcO4-), from water, has also been presented. The results show, that both batch adsorption of radionuclides and adsorption-membrane filtration (AMF) using the FA as an adsorbent can be effectively used for water purification and in the form of a solid directed to long-term storage.

MOF-Based Sorbents Used for the Removal of Hg2+ from Aqueous Solutions via a Sorption-Assisted Microfiltration.

Mercury is considered to be one of the most important chemicals of public health concern. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an effective method of removing mercury ions from aqueous solutions to protect people from exposure to this element. This paper presents research on the application of a sorption-assisted microfiltration (SAMF) hybrid process for the removal of Hg2+ from aqueous solutions. As adsorbents used in the process, the metal-organic-framework-UiO-66-type materials have been considered. The methods of synthesis of two types of metal-organic-framework (MOF) sorbents were developed: UiO-66_MAA modified with mercaptoacetic acid (MAA) and a composite of UiO-66 with cellulose. The results of the experiments performed proved that the separation of Hg2+ from water solutions conducted in such a system was effective; however, a relatively long initial contact time of reagents before filtration was required. The experimental results can be used to optimize the parameters of the SAMF process in order to obtain an effective method of Hg2+ removal from aqueous solutions.

Liquid Low-Level Radioactive Waste Treatment Using an Electrodialysis Process.

In this work, the possibility of using electrodialysis for the treatment of liquid low-level radioactive waste was investigated. The first aim of the research was to evaluate the influence of the process parameters on the treatment of model solutions with different compositions. Subsequent experimental tests were conducted using solutions containing selected radionuclides (60Co and 137Cs), which are potential contaminants of effluents from nuclear power plants, as well as components often found in waste generated from industrial and medical radioisotope applications. The results of the experiments performed on real radioactive waste confirmed that electrodialysis was a suitable method for the treatment of such effluents because it ensured high levels of desalination and rates of decontamination. The most important parameters impacting the process were the applied voltage and electrical current. Moreover, this research shows that the application of the ED process enables the separation of non-ionic organic contaminants of LLW, which are unfavorable in further stages of waste predisposal.

Looking for citizen-centered communication: dialogues between radiological protection or nuclear safety specialists and media professionals.

What happens when radiological protection or nuclear safety officials get together with media professionals to talk about public communication on ionizing radiation risks? Do they have common views of the challenges and ways to meet these? This practical article reports on dialogue workshops organized by the EAGLE project in four European countries (France, Poland, Romania, and Slovenia). Common findings are classed and presented by themes, including inter alia: crisis versus everyday communication; mediated versus direct communication; sources, actors, roles and responsibilities; language and format; trust and confidence, balance in reporting and development of risk culture; nuclear industry promotion versus citizen-centered risk communication. The article also presents reflections from an expanded international workshop (RICOMET, June 2015). It echoes the participants in calling for a platform for ongoing dialogue between information sources and transmitters, in the interest of building solid relationships, risk culture and public understanding on ionizing radiation.

Response surface methodology for the modelling of 85Sr adsorption on zeolite 3A and pumice.

The adsorption of 85Sr from aqueous solutions on to zeolite 3A and three types of pumice materials (i.e. Kayseri, Isparta and Nevsehir) was investigated in this study. Experiments with radioactive 85Sr were performed to test the sorption ability of the sorbents to remove this radioisotope from liquid radioactive wastes. The influence of sorbent dosage and initial activity of feed solution on the decontamination factor were analysed and optimized by means of response surface methodology. The parameters of the experiments, namely temperature, pH, time, stirring efficiency, were selected in preliminary tests. The experimental results showed that the most efficient pumice sorbent for 85Sr is Isparta, for which a maximal decontamination factor of 76.92 was obtained by using the sorbent dosage of 0.5% w/v. However, the commercial zeolite 3A was 2.71-fold more efficient than Isparta pumice for decontamination of strontium radioactive solutions. Isparta pumice is a low-cost natural sorbent, and its ability to effectively bind strontium radioisotope from water solutions suggests that this material has further applications for radioactive waste treatment.

Using tracer methods and experimental design approach for examination of hydrodynamic conditions in membrane separation modules.

The possibility of application of fluorescein and radioactive 99mTc as tracers for determination of residence time distribution of liquid phase and for diagnosing hydrodynamic conditions in apparatuses for membrane separation was studied. Two different ultrafiltration systems with diverse arrangement of liquid flow: the apparatus with helical flow generated by the movable element (inner cylinder) and the tubular module with cross flow filtration, were tested by the RTD technique. The tracer studies were supplemented with modelling. The optimal conditions enabling to handle the plug flow-like structure in the helical apparatus were determined. The minimum of dimensionless variance (vard) was obtained at P=0.765 bar, Q(R)=121.88 l/h and Ω=2887.5 rpm. In spite of higher linear velocities attained in the tubular cross-flow module, the flow structure in the helical apparatus was more similar to the ideal plug flow pattern that was demonstrated by higher Peclet numbers and lower values of the dimensionless variance. Application of movable part and Couette-Taylor flow in the membrane apparatus may balance the advantages coming from high flow rates applied in cross-flow filtration systems minimising formation of the deposit on the membrane surface and reducing membrane fouling.

Optimization of Co2+ ions removal from water solutions via polymer enhanced ultrafiltration with application of PVA and sulfonated PVA as complexing agents.

The paper presents the results of the studies of UF-complexation process applied for the removal of Co(2+) ions from water solutions. As binding agents for cobalt ions, the PVA polymer (M(w)=10,000) and its sulfonated form, synthesized in the laboratory, have been used. The method of experimental design and response surface methodology have been employed to find out the optimal conditions for the complexation process and to evaluate the interaction between the input variables, i.e., initial cobalt concentration, pH and amount of the polymer used, expressed as a polymer/Co(2+) ratio r. The data collected by the designed experiments showed that sulfonation of polymer has improved significantly the binding ability of PVA. The optimal conditions of cobalt ions complexation established by response surface model for non-sulfonated PVA polymer have been found to be as follows: the initial concentration of Co(2+)=5.70 mg L(-1), the ratio between polymer and metal ions, r=8.58 and pH=5.93. The removal efficiency of Co(2+) in these conditions was 31.81%. For sulfonated PVA polymer, the optimal conditions determined are as follows: initial concentration of [Co(2+)](0)=10 mg L(-1), r=1.2 and pH=6.5. For these conditions, a removal efficiency of 99.98% has been determined. The experiments showed that Co(2+) removal ability of sulfonated PVA was much higher than its non-sulfonated precursor. Although the polymer concentrations used in the tests with sulfonated PVA were approximately ten times lower than the non-sulfonated one, the removal efficiency of cobalt ions was significantly higher.

Removal of cobalt ions from aqueous solutions by polymer assisted ultrafiltration using experimental design approach: part 2: Optimization of hydrodynamic conditions for a crossflow ultrafiltration module with rotating part.

Application of shear-enhanced crossflow ultrafiltration for separation of cobalt ions from synthetic wastewaters by prior complexation with polyethyleneimine has been investigated via experimental design approach. The hydrodynamic conditions in the module with tubular metallic membrane have been planned according to full factorial design in order to figure out the main and interaction effects of process factors upon permeate flux and cumulative flux decline. It has been noticed that the turbulent flow induced by rotation of inner cylinder in the module conducts to growth of permeate flux, normalized flux and membrane permeability as well as to decreasing of permeate flux decline. In addition, the rotation has led to self-cleaning effect as a result of the reduction of estimated polymer layer thickness on the membrane surface. The optimal hydrodynamic conditions in the module have been figured out by response surface methodology and overlap contour plot, being as follows: DeltaP=70 kPa, Q(R)=108 L/h and W=2800 rpm. In such conditions the maximal permeate flux and the minimal flux decline has been observed.

Accurate translation of the genetic code depends on tRNA modified nucleosides.

Transfer RNA molecules translate the genetic code by recognizing cognate mRNA codons during protein synthesis. The anticodon wobble at position 34 and the nucleotide immediately 3' to the anticodon triplet at position 37 display a large diversity of modified nucleosides in the tRNAs of all organisms. We show that tRNA species translating 2-fold degenerate codons require a modified U(34) to enable recognition of their cognate codons ending in A or G but restrict reading of noncognate or near-cognate codons ending in U and C that specify a different amino acid. In particular, the nucleoside modifications 2-thiouridine at position 34 (s(2)U(34)), 5-methylaminomethyluridine at position 34 (mnm(5)U(34)), and 6-threonylcarbamoyladenosine at position 37 (t(6)A(37)) were essential for Watson-Crick (AAA) and wobble (AAG) cognate codon recognition by tRNA(UUU)(Lys) at the ribosomal aminoacyl and peptidyl sites but did not enable the recognition of the asparagine codons (AAU and AAC). We conclude that modified nucleosides evolved to modulate an anticodon domain structure necessary for many tRNA species to accurately translate the genetic code.