Sounding out mussels

Low-frequency radio waves could someday be used instead of chemicals to control zebra mussels, which cause millions of dollars in damage by clogging water intake pipes at power plants and other installations in the US, say researchers based in the US. Zebra mussels in an aquarium that were exposed to very low-frequency electromagnetic waves -- around 60 hertz, or similar to what is emitted by a power outlet -- died within 40 days, according to a study conducted by undergraduate students at Purdue University-Calumet in Hammond, Indiana. Till date, chemicals such as chlorine and bromine have been used to kill mussels.