Aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) is a highly complex mixture. Once released to the environment, some degradation products or intermediates from PFAS precursors may persist in the environment for a long period of time. For example, perfluorooctane sulfonamide (PFOSA) is a known product of aerobic microbial transformation of sulfonamide containing compounds such as N-ethyl perfluorooctane sulfonamide ethanol (N-EtFOSE) and a metabolite of numerous sulfonamide-containing precursors in humans and biota. PFOSA is known to be easily degraded by soil microbes, plants and earthworms. But the mechanisms of plant transformation of this chemical are unclear. 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FTSA) could have been produced from fluorotelomer thioamido sulfonates in Ansul AFFF or fluorotelomer sulfonamide betaines and amines in AFFF manufactured by National Foam. In four wells at Tyndall Air Force Base, the concentrations of 6:2 FTSA all exceeded 1,000 µg/L, much higher than 50 µg/L initially in AFFF. Whether this chemical can be further degraded or not is an unaddressed question. In this talk, we will present our recent study on understanding the interactions between Lemna minor (common duckweed) and the two PFAS intermediates. Results in terms of uptake of the target compounds by duckweed and the stresses caused by the chemicals will be discussed in detail.

Interactions between Lemna minor (common duckweed) and PFAS intermediates: Perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA) and 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (FTSA)

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.