Biofilms as a sink for radionuclides in future granitic nuclear waste repositories

Usually, bacteria do not occur as individual cells in nature but as multicellular communities called biofilms. Biofilms are characterized by building up their own microenvironment, which can differ significantly from that of the bulk solution. They are known to provide a sink for dissolved heavy metals and actinides since EPS, cell walls, cell membranes, and cell cytoplasm can serve as sorption sites. In safety assessment studies for future nuclear waste repositories research on biofilms are becoming more important due to the potential retention for actinides in these microbial communities. For example, in the future underground rock characterization facility tunnel for high-level radioactive waste ONKALO in Finland, massive biofilms are growing next to fracture zones in a granitic rock environment, where groundwater is seeping from bedrock fractures. The biofilms are described as a pink and solid slime, consisting of Pseudomonas anguilliseptica, Arthrobacter bergeri, Hydrogenophaga sp., Methylobacter tundripaludum, Rhodoferrax ferrireducens, and Haliscomenobacter hydrossis. In laboratory experiments uranium was added to the circulating groundwater obtained from the fracture. EF-TEM investigations indicated that uranium in the biofilm was immobilized intracellularly in cells by the formation of metabolically mediated calcium uranyl phosphate, similar to needle-shaped autunite (Ca[UO2]2[PO4]2 ● 2–6H2O) or meta-autunite (Ca[UO2]2[PO4]2 .● 10–12H2O) [1].
Biofilms are also present in open fracture zones and on granitic tunnel walls at the Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory (HRL) in Sweden. The biofilms are predominantly formed by the indigenous iron-oxidizing bacterium Gallionella ferruginea with up to 90 wt% precipitated ferric oxyhydroxide. The combination of the biological material and iron oxides resulted in a large reactive surface area leading to a remarkably high bioaccumulation and adsorption of radionuclides.