Bacteria immediately sound the alarm on pipeline leaks
Bacteria are now available to researchers to treat contaminated soil and water. Veera Gnaneswar Gude, a lecturer in environmental engineering at Mississippi State University, is a leader in this field.
Bacteria, or living sensors, will in the future prevent environmental disasters caused by leaks in natural gas and oil pipelines. "The advantage of our sensors is the fact that they can detect even very small leaks, so that the staff in the control center can initiate repairs very quickly," says Veera Gnaneswar Gude, a lecturer in environmental engineering at Mississippi State University.
Microorganisms under power
Gude uses bacteria that release electrons during metabolism. They feed on hydrocarbons such as oil and gas. These electrically negative atomic particles pass through a resistor and end up with another bacterium, which takes up electrons. This creates an electrical voltage between the two types of bacteria.
Bacteria sensors attached to the inside of a pipeline provide reliable data. If a leak occurs, the voltage changes. That's the alarm signal for the repair crew. Gude and his team present their solution at the 255th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society http://acs.org in New Orleans, which runs through March 22.
One million liters of gasoline spilled
Pipelines are inspected on a regular basis. On one of these occasions, personnel discovered a large leak in a natural gas pipeline in Alabama. It could not be sealed immediately because the pressure had to be released first. In all, about a million gallons of gasoline leaked. "In the future, we won't have to wait for things to get out of hand," Gude said. That's one advantage, he says. The second: Bacteria he previously researched could be used to treat contaminated soil and water.
Gude is looking for a material in which he can immobilize the two bacteria. He is currently testing highly porous plastic and bio-based coatings. In addition to pipelines, the living sensor could also be used to detect oil and gas blowouts on the ocean floor. It could also be used in fracking to prevent contaminated water from entering the environment. Fracking involves injecting a mixture of water, sand and a number of chemicals into the ground at high pressure to open up rocks containing oil and gas so that the fossil raw materials can be extracted.
