Removal of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water and water/soil slurry using Fe0‐modified reactive activated carbon conjugated with persulfate
Abstract
Treatment of highly persistent perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has been a challenging but significant task. Herein, we propose adsorption‐mediated chemical decomposition of PFAS implemented by using granular activated carbon (GAC) impregnated with zerovalent nanoiron (ZVI, Fe0), so‐called reactive activated carbon (RAC). The effects of reaction temperature, injection of persulfate (PS), and presence of soil on removal of PFAS in water were evaluated. Results showed that RAC conjugated with PS at 60°C exhibited decomposition of PFAS, exclusively all three carboxylic PFAS tested, obviously producing various identifiable short‐chain PFAS. Carboxylic PFAS were removed via physical adsorption combined with chemical decomposition while sulfonic PFAS were removed via solely adsorption mechanism. The presence of soil particles did not greatly affect the overall removal of PFAS. Carbon mass balance suggested that chemical oxidation by radical mechanisms mutually influences, in a complex manner, PFAS adsorption to GAC, ZVI and its iron derivatives, and soil particles. Nonetheless, all tested six PFAS were removed significantly. If successfully developed, the adsorption‐mediated decomposition strategy may work for treatment of complex media containing PFAS and co‐contaminants under different environmental settings.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Dec 15, 2021
- Source ID
- 10.1002/wer.1671
Entities
People
- Akshay Chandrashekar Parenky
- Hiep H. Nguyen
- Hyeok Choi
- Junha Jeon
- Naomi Gevaerd De Souza
Organizations
- Parsons Corporation
- United States Department of Defense
- University of Texas at Arlington