At the same time, they absorbed the energy in the chemical bond. These bacteria can also get energy by separating sulphur from zinc, lead and uranium. These bacteria are much more clever at purifying metals than we humans are. The only way we humans can get rid of sulphides is by melting ores at a high temperature. This takes a lot of energy, and dumps a lot of sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere, which leads to acid rain.
Bacteria are a vast untapped resource.
Most of the bacteria in the world have not yet been discovered - just like most of the insects and drugs in the tropical rainforests are still unknown to us.1 Bacteria were first used commercially in the late 70's to purify ores. In the mid-80's, these same versatile bacteria rescued the US copper industry, which had major problems. At the same time, the Environmental Protection Agency was stopping industries from dumping sulphur dioxide into the air - another expense. But the bacteria saved the day. The world's largest bacteria plant is planned for Wiluna in Western Australia.