SBIR Phase II: Optimized Hydrothermal Reactor for Scalable and Affordable Destruction of Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances (PFAS)

这一小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第二阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是，加速了一项用于销毁有毒的全氟烷基和多氟烷基（PFAS）的新技术，它们也被称为“永远的化学品”。PFAS化学品广泛用于消防泡沫和消费品。然而，它们是难以置信的顽固的环境污染物，对人类有剧毒，而且很难被摧毁。在机场、军事基地和制造场所附近的土壤、地下水和饮用水的广泛污染正在推动全球努力清除和摧毁PFAS毒素。PFAS很难通过焚烧来分解，而且它们没有自然的半衰期。环境修复行业需要有效的PFAS现场、报废销毁技术。SBIR二期项目开发的技术节能、可扩展，可与现有技术相结合，可大规模用于销毁富含pfas的废物。SBIR二期项目旨在降低在开发和扩大水热碱性处理（HALT）过程中与系统腐蚀和化学品消耗相关的技术风险，以破坏PFAS。水热处理一直受到腐蚀和组件寿命低的挑战，并且/或者需要使用昂贵的合金，可更换的系统组件和/或优雅的化学防腐策略。这就是说，水热过程是销毁危险废物，例如PFAS的一些最有效和最有效的技术。该项目将侧重于测量和减轻材料腐蚀挑战，以便更广泛地采用水热法处理废物。此外，HALT加工需要使用碱性化学品作为工艺添加剂。在这个项目中，通过采用化学品回收战略，可以大大减少化学品的使用，提高整体单位经济效益，减少半加工的环境足迹。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is the acceleration of a new technology for the destruction of toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS), otherwise known as “forever chemicals”. PFAS chemicals are widely used in firefighting foams and consumer goods. However, they are incredibly recalcitrant environmental pollutants, highly toxic to humans, and very hard to destroy. Widespread contamination of soil, groundwater, and drinking water at sites near airports, military bases, and manufacturing sites is driving a global effort to remove and destroy PFAS toxins. PFAS are poorly broken down by incineration and they do not have a natural half-life. The environmental remediation industry needs effective technology for on-site, end-of-life destruction of PFAS. The technology being developed in this SBIR Phase II project is energy efficient, scalable, pairs with existing technologies, and can be deployed at-scale for the destruction of PFAS-rich wastes. This SBIR Phase II project seeks to reduce technical risks related to system corrosion and chemical consumption in the development and scale-up of the hydrothermal alkaline treatment (HALT) process for the destruction of PFAS. Hydrothermal processing has historically been plagued by challenges with corrosion and low component lifetimes, and/or has requiring the use of expensive alloys, replaceable system components, and/or elegant chemical corrosion prevention strategies. This said, hydrothermal processes are some of the most effective and efficient technologies for destroying hazardous wastes, such as PFAS. This project will focus on measuring and mitigating the material corrosion challenges to enable more widespread adoption of hydrothermal processes for waste disposal. Additionally, HALT processing requires the use of alkaline chemicals as process additives. In this project, by adopting chemical recycling strategies, the use of chemicals may be drastically reduced, improving overall unit economics and reducing the environmental footprint of HALT processing.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.