New process results in near complete destruction of PFAS chemicals
From Cosmos (10/5/24)…
New process results in near complete destruction of PFAS chemicals
US researchers have discovered a new strategy to clean up “forever chemicals” from contaminated water and importantly, it can do so at room temperatures.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are entirely man-made chemicals widely used for their heat-resistant, and water, oil, and dirt-repellent properties.
However, PFAS’ stubbornly strong carbon-fluorine bonds are resistant to chemical and biological degradation, which allows them to persistindefinitely in the environment.
Results from epidemiological studies and animal testing have linked PFAS exposure to health problems, so there is an increasingly urgent need for strategies to degrade them.
The new method detailed in the journal Nature Water involves treating heavily contaminated water with ultra-violet (UV) light, sulphite (SO32−) and electrochemical oxidation.
“In this work, we continued our research on the UV-based treatment, but this time, we had a collaboration with an electrochemical oxidation expert at Clarkson University,” says co-author Jinyong Liu, an associate professor of chemical environmental engineering at the University of California, Riverside.
“We put these two steps together and we achieved near-complete destruction of PFAS in various water samples contaminated by [fire-suppressing] foams.”
Fire-suppressing foams are a major source of PFAS pollution in groundwater. Credit: Sviatlana Lazarenka/Getty Images
