A tiny bacterium may help lessen petroleum minister Murli Deora’s woes. Researchers at the M.S. University of Baroda have isolated a bioactive compound from a strain of Bacillus subtilis that can boost recovery of crude oil from existing wells by 30 per cent, at least in laboratory conditions. The compound, separated by a team of researchers led by Anjana Desai, would soon be used by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation in some wells in Gujarat. Significantly, the compound is capable of withstanding extreme temperatures associated with operating oil wells. Once purified, the biodegradable compound — a biosurfactant — can also find use in detergent and cosmetic industries, replacing chemicals that are toxic and harmful to the environment, says Desai. A surfactant is normally added to a detergent to reduce the surface tension of water, making it easy for the other molecules to dislodge the dirt. The work appears in a forthcoming issue of Bioresource Technology.

No-stink clothes

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, have enlisted a natural ally to fight the foul smell that emanates from clothes after they have been worn. The fabric is first given an anti-microbial treatment to keep odour-causing germs at bay, which may fail to go even after washing. The material used for such treatment is normally of synthetic origin. Led by Mangala Joshi of the department of textile technology, the researchers have isolated a compound from neem seeds, which when blended with glycol, could foster anti-microbial properties lasting upto 25 home launderings. For a fabric to be permanently durable, the property should stay upto 50 washes. The findings will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Applied Polymer Science.