New method in the fight against forever chemicals
Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a new way to break down a dangerous subgroup of PFAS known as PFOS. With the help of nanoparticles and ultrasound, piezocatalysis could offer an effective alternative to existing processes in the future.
ETH Zurich researchers are for the first time using a technology known as “piezocatalysis” to break down hazardous PFOS chemicals in water with the help of nanoparticles and ultrasound.
The method has had promising results in the laboratory, with tests showing that it degraded 90.5 percent of the PFOS.
Despite the success in the lab, the challenge of how to scale up the method for use in practice remains.
Researchers in the group under Salvador Pané i Vidal, Professor at ETH Zurich’s Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems, have developed a new method to break down a subgroup of PFAS called perfluorooctane sulfonates, or PFOS. Due to their toxicity, PFOS are now severely restricted or even banned. “The main problem is that the molecules consist of long carbon chains surrounded by fluorine atoms. This carbon-fluorine bond is so strong that you need a lot of energy to break it,” says Andrea Veciana, a doctoral student of Pané i Vidal’s.
Read the full article on the ETH News page.