Researchers at the French Atomic Energy Commission’s Cadarache laboratory
near Aix-en-Provence have developed a mousse that cleans pipes contaminated with
radioactive caesium and cobalt. These pipes are usually scoured with solutions
of chemicals that soak up radioactive elements. However, this generates
radioactive effluent that must be treated. The scrubbing mousse is a mixture of
decontaminating chemicals and surfactants dispersed in air or another gas. It
can cut waste volumes by up to 20 times, and can be recycled.
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