Waste treatment and disposal encompasses the engineered processes and systems used to manage solid, liquid, and gaseous wastes to minimize environmental and human health impacts. It includes physical, chemical, and biological treatment methods such as sedimentation, filtration, adsorption, oxidation–reduction, incineration, composting, anaerobic digestion, and advanced thermal or physicochemical processes, often integrated with resource recovery (e.g., energy, nutrients, materials). Disposal refers to the final placement of residuals in landfills, deep-well injection, or other long-term containment systems designed with liners, leachate collection, gas management, and monitoring to control emissions, prevent groundwater contamination, and ensure regulatory compliance.
One of the highest-risk components of nuclear waste is iodine-129 (I-129), which stays radioactive for millions of years and accumulates in human thyroids when ingested. In the U.S., nuclear waste containing I-129 is scheduled ...
Environment
Nov 5, 2025
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Microbial fuel cell (MFC) technology has received considerable attention in the field of wastewater treatment over the past decade. This technology can simultaneously generate electricity and treat wastewater by cultivating ...
Biotechnology
Nov 3, 2025
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Greenhouse gas emissions from many wastewater treatment plants may be more than twice as large as previously thought. This is shown in a new study from Linköping University, where the researchers used drones with specially ...
Environment
Oct 30, 2025
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Africa's renewable energy revolution needs careful management to avoid a toxic waste crisis, to prevent people from burning and burying old solar panels.
Environment
Oct 27, 2025
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When 115,000 tons of food waste hit Surrey's processing facility each year, an invisible army goes to work—billions of microbes convert everything from banana peels to leftover pizza into renewable natural gas (RNG). Now, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Oct 23, 2025
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A unique bacterium that thrives in highly acidic environments feeds on spent battery "waste," making it a promising new method for self-sufficient battery recycling, according to new research from Boston College chemists.
Biotechnology
Oct 22, 2025
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Bedding choice is a crucial factor in both cow comfort and udder health, and dairy farms in the Midwest are increasingly turning to recycled manure solids (RMS) as a cost-effective and readily available option. But because ...
Agriculture
Oct 22, 2025
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Millions of tons of discarded electronics from the United States are being shipped overseas, much of it to developing countries in Southeast Asia unprepared to safely handle hazardous waste, according to a new report released ...
Environment
Oct 22, 2025
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Skoltech researchers have created a promising catalyst to speed up a chemical reaction producing clean hydrogen fuel from the urea contained in wastewater. While that process is known to be catalyzed by various forms of nickel, ...
Nanophysics
Oct 20, 2025
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10
A new study has uncovered how tiny differences in boron atoms can help scientists better predict the long-term behavior of glass used to store hazardous waste. The findings, published in Environmental and Biogeochemical Processes, ...
Earth Sciences
Oct 15, 2025
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