Redox electrodialysis and electrosorption combined to remove PFAS

This is the claim of a team from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) whose study is said to be the first to describe an electrochemical strategy to capture, concentrate and destroy mixtures of PFAS — including ultra-short-chain PFAS — from water in a single process.

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a group of synthetic chemicals that are used in numerous products and are often referred to as ‘forever chemicals’. According to the US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, studies have linked exposure to certain PFAS with health effects in humans and animals, including liver damage, immune system damage, low birth weight, and birth defects. 

This new development looks set to address the growing industrial problem of contamination with PFAS, particularly in semiconductor manufacturing.

A previous U. of I. study showed that short- and long-chain PFAS can be removed from water using electrochemically driven adsorption (electrosorption), but this method is ineffective for ultra-short-chain molecules because of their small size and different chemical properties.