Faster, on-site way to detect PFAS
New method could aid in the removal of the toxic, persistent
environmental contaminants

Date:
September 15, 2020
Source:
Curtin University
Summary:
Scientists have developed a new and easier on-site method to
immediately and accurately detect and measure levels of PFAS,
which are persistent environmental pollutants sometimes found in
contaminated lands and waters around the industrialized world.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Curtin University research has developed a new and easier on-site method
to immediately and accurately detect and measure levels of PFAS, which
are persistent environmental pollutants sometimes found in contaminated
lands and waters around the industrialised world.


========================================================================== Professor Damien Arrigan, from the School of Molecular and Life Sciences
at Curtin University, explained PFAS (per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances) are potentially harmful chemical materials that were used for
a long time in various commercial and industrial applications, including
in firefighting foams, some non-stick cookware, stain and water resistant coatings on carpet and clothing, and various paper and packaging products.

"As a result of their widespread use, many groundwater and soil sites
around the world are contaminated with these materials, which are often referred to as 'forever chemicals,' because they don't breakdown or
degrade in the natural environment," Professor Arrigan said.

"The only way to prevent them entering the food chain, is to minimise
or remove the chemicals from the environment -- making early detection a
highly desirable part of this removal process." Typically speaking, to
find out if a site or body of water is contaminated with PFAS materials,
soil or water samples must be taken from a site and then taken to a
laboratory for chemical analysis, a process which may take several days.

The Curtin research, in collaboration with Universidad Nacional de
Co'rdoba, Argentina, sought to improve this process by using on-site
chemical sensors which allow an instant contamination test that
immediately indicates which water samples should be collected and sent
to a lab for a more detailed chemical analysis.

"The chemical sensors we developed use electrodes to push ionised
PFAS across an oil-water interface, or 'boundary,' using special glass membranes with microholes. This process changes the electrical properties
of the interface and gives us an electrical current that tells us about
the concentration of substances," Professor Arrigan said.

"This method allows us to not only detect the presence of perfluorooctane sulfonate, one of the most widely used PFAS, but also measure it at very
low concentration levels -- lower than the concentration values set for
safe limits of this substance in drinking water.

"Our preliminary results show that with our new method, it is possible
to immediately detect very small concentrations of PFAS substances in
waters, without the need to send the samples offsite for initial analysis.

"With appropriate development into a more portable, robust technology,
this method could potentially be used by industry and government agencies,
and the general public, to monitor PFAS concentration in water and soils
and get results within minutes, rather than days." The full research
paper, Detection of perfluorooctane sulfonate by ion-transfer stripping voltammetry at an array of microinterfaces between two immiscible
electrolyte solutions, was published in the journal Analyst and can be
found online here.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Curtin_University. Original written
by April Kleer. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Benjami'n N. Viada, Lidia M. Yudi, Damien W. M. Arrigan. Detection
of
perfluorooctane sulfonate by ion-transfer stripping voltammetry
at an array of microinterfaces between two immiscible electrolyte
solutions.

The Analyst, 2020; 145 (17): 5776 DOI: 10.1039/D0AN00884B ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200915090125.htm

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