Chemists at UCLA and Northwestern University have developed a simple way to break down almost a dozen types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at relatively low temperatures with no harmful byproducts.
The researchers show that in water heated to just 176 to 248 degrees Fahrenheit, common, inexpensive solvents, and reagents severed molecular bonds in PFAS that are among the strongest known and initiated a chemical reaction that “gradually nibbled away at the molecule” until it was gone, said UCLA distinguished research professor and co-corresponding author Kendall Houk.
The simple technology, the comparatively low temperatures, and the lack of harmful byproducts mean there is no limit to how much water can be processed at once, Houk added. The technology could eventually make it easier for water treatment plants to remove PFAS from drinking water.
The current work degraded 10 types of perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) and perfluoroalkyl ether carboxylic acids (PFECAs), including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). The researchers believe their method will work for most PFAS that contain carboxylic acids and hope it will help identify weak spots in other classes of PFAS. They hope these encouraging results will lead to further research that tests methods for eradicating the thousands of other types of PFAS.
The study, “Low-temperature mineralization of perfluorocarboxylic acids,” was supported by the National Science Foundation.
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NGWA has long been an industry leader in providing PFAS research, education, and resources to the public and scientific communities. Learn more by visiting NGWA.org/PFAS, which is a complete resource center about the groundwater contaminants featuring a FAQs document, a top-10 facts sheet, a homeowner checklist, and more.
Also found there is Groundwater and PFAS: State of Knowledge and Practice, which NGWA published in 2017 and is one of the first PFAS guidance documents to be released. The Association recently hosted its second conference in Westerville, Ohio, focused entirely on PFAS science and remediation.