Scientists at Northeastern University in Changchun, China, recently developed a new technique for collecting uranium from ocean water, a discovery published in the journal ACS Central Science reads.
Uranium is conventionally mined from rock sources, which are limited in supply. The Earth's oceans and seas are estimated to hold approximately 4.5 billion tons of uranium, exceeding land-based deposits by over a thousandfold.
In seawater, uranium is found as tiny charged particles, which scientists call uranyl. Extracting uranyl from ocean water proves challenging because the materials used lack enough surface area, which hinders the effective trapping of uranium ions.
A Chinese research team has developed a carbon fiber material infused with distinct binding agents. Following chemical treatment, the fiber material develops numerous small cavities capable of entrapping uranyl particles.
During experimental trials, this carbon fiber fabric demonstrated an impressive ability to extract 12.6 milligrams of uranium per gram of seawater over 24 days, outperforming many previously tested materials.
The advance is significant as it presents a viable approach to tapping into the vast uranium reserves of the oceans for nuclear fuel. This comes on the heels of Russian scientist's recent development of a method for removing radioactive contaminants from water.