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Published September 2021 | public
Journal Article

Electrochemical technologies for per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances mitigation in drinking water and water treatment residuals

Abstract

Water treatment technologies are needed that can convert per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) into inorganic products (e.g., CO₂, F⁻) that are less toxic than parent PFAS compounds. Research on electrochemical treatment processes such as electrocoagulation and electrooxidation has demonstrated proof-of-concept PFAS removal and destruction. However, research has primarily been conducted in laboratory matrices that are electrochemically favorable (e.g., high initial PFAS concentration [μg/L–mg/L], high conductivity, and absence of oxidant scavengers). Electrochemical treatment is also a promising technology for treating PFAS in water treatment residuals from nondestructive technologies (e.g., ion exchange, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis). Future electrochemical PFAS treatment research should focus on environmentally relevant PFAS concentrations (i.e., ng/L), matrix conductivity, natural organic matter impacts, short-chain PFAS removal, transformation products analysis, and systems-level analysis for cost evaluation.

Additional Information

© 2021 American Water Works Association. Issue Online: 14 October 2021; Version of Record online: 14 October 2021; Manuscript accepted: 21 September 2021; Manuscript revised: 10 September 2021; Manuscript received: 23 April 2021. This project was supported by Water Equipment and Policy Research Center (WEP) located at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (IIP-1540032) and Marquette University (IIP-1540010). WEP operates under the auspices of the National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center Program. Author Contributions: Donald R. Ryan: Conceptualization; data curation; formal analysis; investigation; visualization; writing – original draft; project administration; writing – review and editing. Brooke K. Mayer: Conceptualization; supervision; funding acquisition; writing – original draft; project administration; writing – review and editing. Claire Baldus: Data curation; investigation; visualization; writing – original draft; writing – review and editing. Sean T. McBeath: Writing – review and editing. Yin Wang: Conceptualization; data curation; funding acquisition; visualization; writing – review and editing. Patrick J. McNamara: Conceptualization; supervision; funding acquisition; writing – original draft; project administration; writing – review and editing. The authors declare no conflicts of interest that would otherwise impact or otherwise influence the production of this work. Data Availability Statement: This manuscript is a literature review that focuses on data presented in previously published studies and critical analysis for the proposed roadmap of research. Accordingly, this manuscript does not include original data.

Additional details

Created:
August 20, 2023
Modified:
October 23, 2023