The First Demonstration Project of Harmless Treatment of Antibiotic Residues by the Electron Beam in China was Completed and Put into Operation in Yining, Xinjiang

On July 23, the first demonstration project of harmless treatment of antibiotic residues by the electron beam in China was completed and put into operation in Yining City, Kazak Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The project is a nuclear energy development and scientific research funding project of the China Atomic Energy Authority. It is constructed by CGN Nuclear Technology Development Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “CGN Nuclear Technology”, Stock Code: 000881. SZ) which is a subsidiary of CGN, and the daily treatment of antibiotic bacterial residue is 100-120 tons, and the treated bacterial residue can be made into fertilizer to realize resource reuse.

Plant of the first demonstration project of harmless treatment of antibiotic bacterial residue by the electron beam in China

It is known that the bacterial residue contains a large amount of crude protein, crude fiber, crude fat, as well as a variety of amino acids and trace elements, which has high utilization value. However, the residual antibiotics in the bacterial residue will induce the generation of resistance genes, cause the spread and diffusion of drug-resistant bacteria, and cause potential harm to the ecological environment and human health, “National Catalogue of Hazardous Wastes” of China clearly stipulates that antibiotic bacterial residue is listed as hazardous waste. Therefore, the safe disposal and effective utilization of antibiotic residue has become an urgent problem for pharmaceutical enterprises and relevant regulatory departments.

Device for treating antibiotic bacterial residue by the electron beam irradiation

In order to implement the spirit of the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping on “speeding up completing the weakness of collection and treatment facilities of medical wastes and hazardous wastes”, CGN Nuclear Technology united with Research Institute of Nuclear Energy and New Energy Technology of Tsinghua University (hereinafter referred to as “Tsinghua University Nuclear Research Institute”) and the National Engineering Technology Center for Harmless Treatment and Resource Utilization of Antibiotic Residue for Environmental Protection (hereinafter referred to as “Bacterial Residue Engineering Technology Center”) started the construction of China's first demonstration project for harmless treatment of antibiotic residue by the electron beam in Xinjiang Yining Yili Chuanning Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Chuanning Biotechnology”) in July 2018. In July 2020, the project has completed the installation of the body equipment of the electron accelerator and the radiation-processing reactor, and entered the operation commissioning stage.The project adopts an electron accelerator, which can not only effectively remove antibiotic residues, kill drug-resistant bacteria and eliminate resistance gene pollution, but also retain nutrients,  such as protein and polysaccharide in bacterial residue through the direct radiation of high-energy electron beam and the oxidation-reduction of active particles, such as hydroxyl free radical (•OH), hydrated electron (eaq−) and hydroperoxy radical (•H) which is produced by exciting water molecules in situ. The treated bacterial residue can be made into fertilizer for directional planting of industrial corn, soybean and other crops after environmental risk assessment, and after harvest, it can be used as raw material for the fermentation production process of antibiotics, so as to create a green circular economy system of modern industry and agriculture.

Dried Bacterial Residue Compost

Mr. Wang Jianlong, Vice President of the Tsinghua University Nuclear Research Institute, said that at present, incineration and landfill are widely used in the treatment of antibiotic residues in China, which not only costs highly and occupies land resources, but also is easy to produce harmful gases and cause secondary environmental pollution. Electron beam harmless treatment of antibiotic residue has the characteristics of safety, high efficiency, economy, wide application and no secondary pollutants, it provides a new technical means of harmless, reduction and resource for antibiotic residue treatment, and has broad application prospects.

Mr. Hu Dongming, Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of CGN Nuclear Technology, said that the electron beam harmless treatment of antibiotic bacterial residue technology is another high-tech achievement of CGN Nuclear Technology in the field of environmental treatment after the industrialized application of electron beam treatment of industrial wastewater and medical sewage technology. At present, CGN Nuclear Technology has taken the lead in undertaking five nuclear energy development and scientific research funding projects of China Atomic Energy Authority, and has been approved to establish the “China Atomic Energy Authority Nuclear Technology (Environmental Application of Electron Beam Technology) R&D Center”.

Mr. Abulikmu·Nulanbuick, the member of the Party Leading Group and vice governor of the People's Government of Yili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture, said that Yili is an important water conservation area and biodiversity protection functional area in Xinjiang, and is an important ecological barrier in the northwest of the motherland, the mission of protecting Yili's ecological environment is very glorious, significant and far-reaching. The completion and operation of the project not only sets a benchmark for the harmless treatment and resource utilization of antibiotic residue in China, but also provides a “Hard Core” technical guarantee for the ecological environment protection of Yili and even Xinjiang.

Mr. Pang Songtao, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Senior Vice President of CGN, said that: CGN united with Tsinghua University, has experienced “Ten Years Hard Working Molds a Sword”, the self-developed electron beam pollution control technology is at the forefront of the world and has been successfully applied in printing and dyeing, pharmaceutical, medical, chemical and other fields, especially in the COVID-19 outbreak, electron beam irradiation technology has played a unique role in the effective disinfection and sterilization of anti-epidemic materials, and the wastewater treatment of COVID-19 designated treatment hospital.

“The completion and operation of China's first electron beam harmless treatment of antibiotic bacterial residue demonstration project has great significance for building a beautiful Xinjiang with blue sky, green earth and clear water, and protecting the ecological barrier in the northwest of the motherland.” Mr. Yang Changli, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of CGN, said that since 2008, CGN has invested nearly RMB11 billion yuan in Xinjiang, involving wind power generation, solar photovoltaic power generation, uranium resource exploration and mining, bio-energy development and civil non-power nuclear technology application. At the same time, CGN sent out main technology, resources and personnel to actively carry out targeted assistance to Xinjiang, made great efforts to help the region win the battle against poverty on schedule, and contributed to the strength of central enterprises for the economic and social development and the continuous improvement of people's livelihood in Xinjiang.

Mr. Deng Ge, Secretary General of the China Atomic Energy Authority, conveyed congratulations that the project team overcame difficulties and made every effort to ensure the completion and operation of the project under the background of epidemic prevention and control. He pointed out that this project is a nuclear technology application project mainly supported by the China Atomic Energy Authority, the treatment of antibiotic residue by the electron beam is a typical embodiment of the application of nuclear technology in the industrial field. For the follow-up work, Mr. Deng Ge put forward three suggestions: First, continue to do a good job in the overall construction of the project. At the same time, make a technical summary and pay close attention to the formulation of relevant technical standards and specifications; Second, take the completion and operation of the project as an opportunity to continuously expand the industrial scale of nuclear technology in the field of national economy; Third, pay close attention to practical work and collaborative innovation, actively integrate the nuclear technology application industry into the main fields of local economic development, and achieve a new situation of mutual promotion and common development with relevant interconnected industries.