Read the full article by Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (SciTechDaily)
“The carbon-fluorine bonds inside PFAS are among the strongest in chemistry, allowing these industrial pollutants to persist in water for years. Researchers at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) are testing two ways to break those bonds: hydrodynamic cavitation and cold atmospheric plasma combined with gas dispersion.
Analyses by experts at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) confirmed that both processes degraded per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and released fluoride. If developed into practical industrial systems, the methods could help limit the amount of these highly persistent chemicals entering rivers, lakes and oceans.
The PFAS family contains more than 10,000 short- and long-chain industrial compounds. Some are suspected of damaging genetic material and increasing cancer risk, while the biological effects of many others remain poorly understood. Their resistance to chemical breakdown comes from exceptionally stable carbon-fluorine bonds.
PFAS commonly reach rivers and oceans through wastewater and have spread around the world. Researchers have recently detected high concentrations in the Elbe River, raising potential concerns for plants, wildlife and human health.”…