US biofuel laboratory unveils ethene-eating microbe

A US biofuel laboratory has revealed a natural method of restoring health to contaminated groundwater, using microbes that eat substances like dry-cleaning fluid.

Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) scientists found the microbes in a contaminated watercourse and decided to investigate whether they could be put to work on other areas where ethenes had leaked.

Project manager Mark Amidon says: "If they are as effective as we expect in cleaning up the chemical contamination in the groundwater, it will be far cheaper than energy-intensive types of cleanup."

Such alternatives include heating the soil in the ground, along with "pump-and-treat techniques", he adds.

The biofuel laboratory at SRNL is dedicated to a research pipeline to promote more efficient use of feedstocks as fuel.

Beginning with the growth of next-generation crops for ethanol generation, this pipeline leads through biogasification, biohydrogen production and the use of algae to the ultimate aim of a pilot plant to demonstrate energy security through biological means.