In the race to find effective strategies for eliminating PFAS contamination, new bacteria are rising as interesting solutions with promising results in environmental restoration. Current research indicates that some bacterial species within the Acetobacterium genum can break down particular PFAS compounds by using a process termed ‘reductive defluorination. The finding holds importance since these persistent chemicals resist natural breakdown and threaten both human health and the ecosystem.
Companies are beginning to back these biotechnological methods while academic researchers drive the progress. Fixed Earth Innovations has launched a microbe-focused solution aimed at cleaning up PFAS contamination from certain locations. According to the company’s Repas representative their test trials revealed encouraging outcomes with PFAS levels dropping by as much as 97% at a contaminated airport location in Wisconsin. Although Repas recognises the difficulty of scaling the technology successfully the technology still must be adjusted for wider implementation.
Similarly, Claros Technologies, based in Minneapolis, has been at the forefront of PFAS detection and destruction.
“We became PFAS detection experts so that we could become destruction experts,”
said John Brockgreitens, Claros’s vice president of research and development.
Claros’s lab has already developed techniques to analyse and destroy 47 of the approximately 15,000 known PFAS chemicals. Their goal is to refine these techniques for broader environmental applications, without generating harmful byproducts.
On the other hand, Boston-based global solutions provider, Gradiant takes a novel route in creative solutions. Using Advanced Oxidation Techniques or AOTs ForeverGone™ technology eliminates PFAS completely.
“We have leveraged our deep knowledge of electrochemistry and material science to solve PFAS,”
said Steven Lam, Head of Technology at Gradiant.
The company is working with its partners to deploy ForeverGone™ at various contaminated sites, and they believe this technology could become a cornerstone in the global effort to eliminate PFAS from water sources.
These developments reveal that both the scientific and industrial communities are moving towards correcting the PFAS challenge. Experts caution that a considerable amount of work is still required. Dr. Yujie Men at the University of California in Riverside discusses research findings related to microbial PFAS degradation and points out that it is “too early” to deploy these microbial solutions on a wide scale.
We need to ensure that the byproducts of PFAS breakdown don’t pose their own risks,”
she said, highlighting a critical challenge in translating lab success into real-world applications.
As regulatory pressure mounts, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency setting strict limits on PFAS in drinking water, the race is on to find reliable and scalable solutions. While the progress made so far is encouraging, it will take continued collaboration between scientists, policymakers, and industry leaders to fully tackle the widespread PFAS contamination problem.
