• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Departments
    • Bioengineering
    • Civil and Environmental Engineering
    • Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences
    • Engineering Science
    • Industrial Engineering and Operations Research
    • Materials Science and Engineering
    • Mechanical Engineering
    • Nuclear Engineering
    • Aerospace program
  • News
    • Berkeley Engineer magazine
    • Social media
    • News videos
    • News digest (email)
    • Press kit
  • Events
    • Events calendar
    • Commencement
    • Homecoming
    • Cal Day
    • View from the Top
    • Kuh Lecture Series
    • Minner Lecture
  • College directory
  • For staff & faculty
Berkeley Engineering

Educating leaders. Creating knowledge. Serving society.

  • About
    • Facts & figures
    • Rankings
    • Mission & values
    • Equity & inclusion
    • Voices of Berkeley Engineering
    • Leadership team
    • Milestones
    • Facilities
    • Maps
  • Admissions
    • Undergraduate admissions
    • Graduate admissions
    • Visit
    • Maps
    • Admissions events
    • K-12 outreach
  • Academics
    • Undergraduate programs
    • Majors & minors
    • Undergraduate Guide
    • Graduate programs
    • Graduate Guide
    • Innovation & entrepreneurship
    • Kresge Engineering Library
    • International programs
    • Executive education
  • Students
    • Advising & counseling
    • ESS programs
    • Academic support
    • Student life
    • Wellness & inclusion
    • Undergraduate Guide
    • > Degree requirements
    • > Policies & procedures
    • Forms & petitions
    • Resources
  • Research & faculty
    • Centers & institutes
    • Undergrad research
    • Faculty
  • Connect
    • Alumni
    • Industry
    • Give
    • Stay in touch
Home > News > Separate ways

Separate ways

Fall 2019 Berkeley Engineer cover
October 25, 2019
This article appeared in Berkeley Engineer magazine, Fall 2019
  • In this issue

    Features

    New frontiers in gene editing

    Keeping edited cells healthy

    Moments of untruth

    At fault

    Dean’s note

    Upfront

    • Separate ways
    • Roach-inspired robot
    • Better eye screening
    • Mass-producing biomaterials
    • Mirror mirror
    • New master’s degree programs
    • Get the lead out
    • A surprising twist

    New & noteworthy

    • Streets named Pew Scholar
    • Alum honored as MEMS pioneer
    • Two faculty named top innovators
    • Farewell

    Download this issue

  • Past issues

Glowing ions with potential use in redioactive decontaminationActinides — the chemical elements with atomic numbers 89 through 103 — have a range of powerful applications, from medicine to nuclear energy. But first, scientists must purify these elements, which is a complex, multistep process that requires separating out contaminants and other elements. Now, a team of researchers, including Rebecca Abergel, assistant professor of nuclear engineering, has created a new and more efficient separation method that may accelerate the discovery of new elements, improve the reprocessing of nuclear fuels and ease the procurement of actinium-225, an isotope that has shown promise for treating cancer. The researchers demonstrated their method on actinium, plutonium and berkelium, and plan to research how this process can be used with other medical isotopes.

Topics: Nuclear engineering, Research
  • Contact
  • Give
  • Privacy
  • UC Berkeley
  • Accessibility
  • Nondiscrimination
  • instagram
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • facebook
  • youtube
© 2023 UC Regents