A New Method to Extract Uranium from Seawater Has Surfaced to Meet Nuclear Demand
There are over 4.5 billion tons of uranium in the ocean - 1,000 times more than on land.
Big Idea:
Chinese researchers have innovated a new electrode material for electrochemical extraction designed to attract uranium ions from seawater more efficiently than current methods.
Why It Matters:
It is estimated that there are 4.5 billion tons of uranium in the ocean as dissolved uranyl ions, over 1,000 times more than on land. The new electrode extraction technology enables harvesting of low-concentration uranium from seawater, about 3 parts per billion, promising a stable and cost-effective uranium supply.
Key Details:
- The electrode material, developed by Rui Zhao and Guangshan Zhu, outperforms existing technologies, extracting 12.6 mg of uranium per gram from seawater, using a flexible carbon fiber cloth with specialized coatings and running a cyclic current between the electrodes.
- In tests using seawater from the Bohai Sea, the material's capacity surpassed that of most other tested uranium-extracting materials, and the electrochemical method was about three times faster than natural accumulation.
- The researchers believe this method could effectively capture uranium from seawater, potentially opening up oceans as new suppliers of nuclear fuel while simultaneously reducing reliance on traditional mining and the need for carbon.
What's Next:
The next steps involve scaling up this technology for industrial use and reducing costs to compete with traditional mining. The method, while promising, still faces challenges in terms of efficiency and environmental impact mitigation.
The Intrigue:
The global reliance on a limited number of uranium mines, often in politically sensitive areas, has long been a concern. This breakthrough could redistribute the geopolitical power dynamics in energy resources.
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