Scientists Find Simple, Safe Way to Destroy ‘Forever Chemicals’

“Forever chemicals” used in everyday items like non-stick pans have long been linked to serious health problems – due to their toxicity and extreme resistance to breakdown as waste products.

Chemists in the United States and China said Thursday they had finally found a breakthrough way to break down these polluting compounds, known as PFAS, using relatively low temperatures and common reagents.

Their findings, published in the journal Science, may offer a solution to a long-standing source of damage to the environment, livestock and humans.

“That’s really why I do science — so I can have a positive impact on the world,” lead author William Dichtel of Northwestern University told reporters during a news conference.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, were first developed in the 1940’s and can now be found in a variety of products including non-stick pans, waterproof textiles and fire suppression foams.

Over time, the pollutants have accumulated in the environment and have entered the air, soil, groundwater, lakes and rivers through industrial processes and leaching from landfills.

A study published last week by scientists from Stockholm University found that rainwater around the world is undrinkable because of PFAS contamination.

Chronic exposure to even low levels has been linked to liver damage, high cholesterol, decreased immune response, low birth weight, and various types of cancer.

Although PFAS chemicals can be filtered out of water, there are few good solutions for their disposal once they have been removed.

Current methods of destroying PFAS require harsh treatments such as B. the combustion at extremely high temperatures or the irradiation with ultrasonic waves.

The indestructibility of PFAS stems from their carbon-fluoride bonds, one of the strongest types of bonds in organic chemistry.

Fluorine is the most electronegative element and likes to gain electrons while carbon likes to share them.

PFAS molecules contain long chains of these bonds, but the research team was able to identify a glaring weakness common to a particular class of PFAS.

At one end of the molecule is a group of charged oxygen atoms that can be attacked with a common solvent and reagent at mild temperatures of 80-120 degrees Celsius, decapitating the head group and leaving a reactive tail.

“Once that happens, it provides access to previously unrecognized pathways that cause the entire molecule to fall apart in a cascade of complex reactions,” said Dichtel, ultimately creating benign end products.

A second part of the study involved using powerful computational methods to map the quantum mechanics behind the chemical reactions the team carried out to destroy the molecules.

The new knowledge could eventually lead to further improvements in the method.

The current study focused on 10 PFAS chemicals, including a key pollutant called GenX, which has polluted the Cape Fear River in North Carolina, for example.

But it’s just the tip of the iceberg, as the US Environmental Protection Agency has identified more than 12,000 PFAS chemicals.

“There are other classes that don’t have the same Achilles’ heel, but each will have its own weakness,” Dichtel said in a statement.

“If we can identify it, we’ll know how to activate it to destroy it.”