Scientists have discovered bacteria that produce pure copper

In Brazilian mines, an unusual species of bacteria was found, belonging to the genus Bacillus, which in the course of their life, feeding on vitriol, are able to independently produce pure copper. It is about this unique discovery that I want to tell you today.

Copper and its importance for humanity

It will not be an exaggeration if I say that copper is the most demanded metal of mankind. After all, it is almost impossible to find a device in which one or another amount of copper was not used, and energy is, in principle, impossible without this metal.

At the moment, according to the calculations of the Copper Development Association Inc., the world's total copper reserves are of the order of one billion tons, and each year mankind collectively produces about 12.5 million tons.

And despite the development of industry, copper mining is a rather "dirty" process from the side of the environment. But the discovery of bacteria could revolutionize this process.

Discovery of scientists and its prospects

So, according to the material published by scientists in the authoritative scientific journal Science Advances, the discovered Bacillus bacteria thrive in an acidic environment rich in copper salts.

In a laboratory test, scientists multiplied the bacteria and added copper sulfate to their nutrient medium. So, 48 hours after the start of the experiment, all traces of sulfuric acid and copper disappeared, leaving behind a precipitate.

After analyzing the sediment, the scientists found that in front of them is monoatomic zero-valent copper. The uniqueness of this discovery lies in the fact that the bacteria discovered by scientists were able to quite easily convert copper sulfate into monoatomic copper with zero valence.

And at the moment, to obtain such copper, a rather energy-consuming and dirty process is used, which has a significant negative impact on the environment.

But with the help of open bacteria, this process can not only be greatly simplified, but also made much safer.

At the moment, scientists continue to experiment with open bacteria, and when we see the process of producing copper by bacteria on an industrial scale, the question is open.

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