Remediation of soil and groundwater impacted by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances

全氟烷基和多氟烷基物质（PFAS）是加拿大湖泊、湿地、地下水和土壤中发现的新污染物。由于PFAS的毒性、持久性和普遍性，其治疗策略和技术的发展在整个北美地区都是迫切需要的。研究结果将直接使加拿大的工业、政府和对受PFAS影响的地点负有环境责任的土地所有者受益。例子包括加拿大机场、石化设施、消防站和军事基地的消防训练区，使用含有全氟磺酸钠的消防泡沫灭火的场所，以及使用全氟磺酸钠制作防水服装、制造某些食品包装和容器以及在织物和地毯上应用防水剂的工业场所。****目前，还没有可用于处理PFAS的现场破坏性技术。污染土壤的处理方法是开挖和场外焚烧，这是一种昂贵的方法，并且涉及到沿公共走廊运输PFAS影响的土壤。受污染的地下水可以通过泵送处理或吸附屏障来处理，这两种方法都很昂贵，而且必须长期运行。这项研究的目的是促进三种不同技术的使用和有效性，以处理受PFAS影响的土壤和地下水，从而使破坏达到低于加拿大筛选值。这些技术是：1)球磨，2)球磨与氧化剂结合，3)金属催化还原剂。研究将在实验室进行，由三名研究生和一名博士后组成的团队与女王大学和加拿大皇家军事学院的教授以及两个提供现金和实物捐助的工业合作伙伴合作。****

Perfluoralkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are emerging contaminants that have been found in Canadian lakes, wetlands, groundwater and soil. The development of treatment strategies and technologies for PFAS represents an urgent need throughout North America due to their toxicity, persistence and ubiquity. Research results will directly benefit Canadian industries, governments and land owners who have environmental liabilities at PFAS impacted sites. Examples include fire-fighting training areas at Canadian airports, petrochemical facilities, fire stations and military bases, sites where fire-fighting foams containing PFAS have been employed to extinguish fires, and industrial sites where PFAS have been used to waterproof clothing, manufacture certain food wrappers and containers, and the application of water repellants on fabrics and carpets. ****Currently, there are no on-site destructive technologies available for the treatment of PFAS. Contaminated soil is treated by excavation and off-site incineration, which is costly and involves the transportation of PFAS impacted soil along public corridors. Contaminated groundwater is treated by either pump-and-treat or adsorptive barriers, which can be costly and must be operated in perpetuity. The objectives of this research are to advance the use and effectiveness of three different technologies for the treatment of soil and groundwater impacted by PFAS such that destruction to below Canadian screening values can be achieved. These technologies are: 1) ball-milling, 2) ball-milling in combination with oxidants, and 3) metal-catalyzed reductants. Research will be carried out in the laboratory by a team of three graduate students and a post-doctoral fellow in collaboration with professors from Queen's University and Royal Military College of Canada, and two industrial partners who are providing cash and in-kind contributions.****