Water utilities and remediation efforts need to select cost-effective PFAS treatment methods to ensure the health and safety of both the population and environment. While several technologies have been successfully employed to treat PFAS-contaminated water, we currently cannot comprehensively compare between technologies. There is no existing framework to consider economic, environmental, and social aspects and model treatment performance under relevant conditions. To this end, we are developing a decision support tool that combines treatment performance process modeling, social and health considerations, life cycle costing (LCC), and life cycle assessment (LCA) to allow users to comprehensively compare granular activated carbon (GAC) and anion exchange resin (AER) PFAS treatment technologies. The user inputs water quality and treatment objectives, and the tool calculates the GAC and AER breakthrough curves of selected PFASs. That performance data is used by the tool to determine GAC and AER replacement rates and generate LCC and LCA inventory data. The tool uses inventory data to quantitatively evaluate each technology’s performance for economic, environmental, and social decision criteria. This is combined into a single, weighted score (i.e., recommendation) based on the stakeholder’s priorities and goals.<br/>To better understand the trade-offs between GAC and AER filters for the removal of various PFASs from groundwater, several representative scenarios will be analyzed with different flowrates and concentrations. For example, there will be a high concentration scenario (i.e., AFFF-contaminated groundwater) and a low concentration scenario (i.e., downstream of a contaminated site). In addition, various regulations will be evaluated to determine their effect on technology selection. This decision support tool will be beneficial to water utilities, allowing the user to quickly compare technologies based on water quality parameters and treatment objectives. Additionally, the user will be able to account for economic, environmental, and social implications when selecting technologies to support sustainable decision making.

Decision support tool combining economic, environmental, and social considerations for the treatment of PFAS in groundwater

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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