Scientists find a simple method to destroy certain PFAS

Scientists have found a way to destroy some PFAS with a simple soap mixture. These so-called eternal chemicals are present in many everyday objects and can cause serious health problems.

The technique, which uses relatively low temperatures and common reagents, was developed by chemists in the United States and China. Their work has been published in the journal Scienceand offers a potential solution to a persistent environmental, livestock and human problem.

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are man-made chemicals that do not occur naturally in the environment. They were first developed in the 1940s and break down very slowly. Over time, the chemicals found in packaging, shampoos, non-stick pans, and makeup, among other things, have begun to leak into the environment and are now abundant in water, soil, air , our groundwater and in lakes and rivers.

Just last week, a Swedish study found that rainwater around the world is undrinkable due to excessive concentrations of PFAS.

According to other studies, exposure to PFAS can affect human fertility and fetal development. There is also an increased risk of obesity or certain cancers (prostate, kidney and testicles) and high cholesterol levels.

Current methods of degrading these pollutants require powerful treatments, such as very high temperature incineration or ultrasonic irradiation. The substances owe their almost indestructible character to the long fluorocarbons that compose them.

However, researchers have discovered a vulnerability in certain types of PFAS: at one end of their molecule, there is a group of oxygen atoms that can be treated with a common solvent and reagent at average temperatures of 80 to 120 degrees Celsius. When this happens, “the whole molecule collapses in a cascade of complex reactions,” says William Dichtel of Northwestern University, one of the study’s authors.

The study focused on ten PFASs, including the important GenX compounds, but together there are up to 12,000 different “eternal chemicals”. “There are other types (of PFAS) that don’t have the same Achilles heel, but they all have their own weakness,” says Dichtel. “If we can identify this weakness, we will know how to activate it to destroy the substance.”