CEE Seminar: Breaking Up is Complicated: Strategies to Simplify PFAS Remediation

Due to their recalcitrance, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) cannot be mineralized using traditional in situ soil and groundwater remediation approaches. Destruction of PFAS in impacted source zones may rely on treatment trains that couple groundwater extraction (i.e., pump and treat) with destructive ex situ techniques. Efficient removal of PFAS from the subsurface will reduce time and costs associated with these combined approaches, but removal may be hindered by slow desorption and low recovery of cationic and zwitterionic PFAS present at some impacted sites. Evaluation of these fate and transport factors is challenged by a lack of analytical standards for usein targeted analysis of the individual species that comprise the majority of the total PFAS mass at some impacted sites. Persulfate oxidation has the potential to convert a complex mixture of PFAS into a more readily analyzed and recoverable mixture of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs). This study used batch and column experiments and a combination of targeted and nontargeted analysis.....