Sorption behavior of Np(V) on microbe pure culture and consortia

The sorption of Np(V) by microbe consortia and by a single pure culture of the Fe-reducing bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens was studied at pH levels between 3 and 7 under resting cell conditions. The sorption of Np(V) by S. putrefaciens obtained under inert conditions and by the consortia in the aerated condition was higher than that by S. putrefaciens under aerobic conditions at low pH below 5, strongly suggesting the presence of another mechanism other than the adsorption of Np(V) on the microbial cell surface, i.e., by reduction to Np(IV).