This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Removing harmful chemicals from contaminated water is only one step toward their elimination. Once collected in filtration materials, these chemicals must still be destroyed and detoxified to prevent contamination from moving into another waste stream.
Researchers at the University of Utah's John and Marcia Price College of Engineering have developed a new method to break down "forever chemicals" under relatively mild conditions. These chemicals, formally known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), have many beneficial uses, but they are difficult to destroy and can persist in the environment. PFAS are a class of water pollutants of global concern because of their severe and long-lasting effects on the environment and public health.
Their strong carbon-fluorine bonds make them resistant to natural breakdown. The study was led by Ling Zang, a distinguished professor in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering and Associate Dean for Research at the Price College of Engineering. "The ultimate goal is to destroy and detoxify PFAS and reduce their hazards, so cleanup does not simply move contamination from water into another waste stream," Zang said.
The results appear in Communications Chemistry. Zang's previous research has focused on removing PFAS through filtration and adsorption and on monitoring treatment performance. This new study builds on that work by introducing a potential method for destroying the chemicals after they have been collected.
To break down PFAS, the research team used reactive chemicals called nucleophiles to sever their strong carbon-fluorine bonds. This process, known as defluorination, released nearly all of the fluorine as fluoride from several tested compounds, including PFOA and trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a particularly stubborn small molecule. Defluorination is central to PFAS destruction and detoxification.
The method also achieved efficient fluorine removal from two fluorinated plastics, PVDF and PCTFE, which are commonly used in batteries, industrial products and munitions. Most tests were conducted at temperatures of 110 degrees Celsius (230 degrees Fahrenheit) or below, although some materials required temperatures up to 150 degrees Celsius. These temperatures are substantially lower than the 1,000 degrees Celsius or higher often used for PFAS incineration.
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