<br/>Due to their low volatility and the strength of carbon-fluorine bonds, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) cannot be treated effectively using conventional in situ remediation technologies such as soil vapor extraction, thermal treatment, chemical oxidation or bioremediation. To address this issue, we seek to develop materials that can be delivered to the subsurface to form permeable, reactive zones that act to sequester and transform PFAS in situ. We have developed a sequestration technology that incorporates delivery of polymer(PolyDADMAC)-stabilized powdered activated carbon (PAC) into aquifer materials, where the retained polymer and activated carbon function as sorbents to remove PFAS from contaminated groundwater. Results obtained from batch reactor and column experiments indicate a sorption capacity of greater than 300 mg PFAS/g , and estimated breakthrough times of greater than 4,000 pore volumes at an injection concentration of 100 ug PFAS/L, respectively. Subsequent experiments conducted in a laboratorty-scale aquifer cell yielded similar sequestration capacities in a three-dimensional, heterogeneous domain. These findings demonstrate the potential use of polymers and activated carbon formulations, which can be tailored for site specific conditions, to control PFAS plume migration. Additional studies are underway to develop engineered nanomaterials that can be delivered to the subsurface to both sequester and transform PFAS in aquifer formations.

Development of reactive materials for in situ treatment of poly and per-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)

256th National Meeting (2018)

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