Field Demonstration of a Sonolysis Reactor for Treatment of PFAS-Contaminated Groundwater
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 148, Issue 11
Abstract
A mobile treatment system equipped with a custom-built sonolysis reactor was deployed at a site in California to treat groundwater impacted with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Extracted groundwater was treated in a 700-kHz sonolysis reactor for batch treatment under different power densities (122, 203, and ) and operating temperatures (15°C and 25°C). Sonolytic treatment resulted in 93%–100% removal of the 15 PFAS identified in the groundwater, and PFAS degradation rates increased proportionally with increasing power density and temperature at operating conditions of 25°C. For all experimental conditions evaluated, greater removal was observed for perfluorinated carboxylic acids (PFCAs) [e.g., 95.1% to 100% for perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)] than perfluorinated sulfonic acids (PFSAs) [68.3% to 95.2% for perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS)] for similar carbon chain lengths. Similarly, greater removal was observed for longer-chain PFAS [e.g., 95.4% to 99.5% for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)] compared with short-chain PFAS [56.9% to 90.4% for perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA)]. Substantial removal of total oxidizable precursors (TOP) and specific precursors [65.5% to 99.1% for 4:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (FTS), 6:2 FTS, 8:2 FTS, and perfluorooctane sulfonamide (FOSA)] was also observed under all conditions tested. Additionally, formation of nitrate was observed, with concentrations below maximum contaminant levels (MCLs). Overall, the results demonstrate that sonolysis treatment of PFAS-contaminated groundwater can effectively degrade PFAS without the formation of short-chain PFAS and the oxidation byproducts chlorate and perchlorate.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
This project was supported by US Navy Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC). We thank Arun Gavaskar and Ramona Iery at NAVFAC EXWC for technical review and support, and Randy Bindas, Kate Bindas, and Chris Joyal at National Environmental Systems (NES) for the construction and integration of the mobile trailer used for this field demonstration. Additionally, we thank the base personnel for supporting the demonstration.
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 11 • November 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 25, 2022
Accepted: Jun 14, 2022
Published online: Sep 8, 2022
Published in print: Nov 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Feb 8, 2023
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Acids
- Carbon fibers
- Chemical compounds
- Chemical degradation
- Chemical processes
- Chemicals
- Chemistry
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Environmental engineering
- Fibers
- Groundwater
- Materials engineering
- Measurement (by type)
- Nitrates
- Pollutants
- Salts
- Temperature effects
- Temperature measurement
- Water (by type)
- Water and water resources
- Water management
- Water treatment
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