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chrisdh79 OP t1_j5jlgz5 wrote

From the article: Scientists in Australia have developed an intriguing new technique for removing toxic “forever chemicals” from water. Adding a solution to contaminated water coats the pollutants and makes them magnetic, so they can easily be attracted and isolated.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of chemicals that have been in wide use around the world since the 1950s, thanks to their water- and oil-repelling properties. However, more recently PFAS chemicals have been linked to a concerning number of health problems, including increased risks of diabetes and liver cancer. Worse still, a recent study has found that their levels in rainwater almost everywhere on Earth exceed the EPA’s guidelines, and to cap it all off, these stable molecules are very hard to break down, earning them the nickname “forever chemicals.”

Now, researchers at the University of Queensland have developed a technique that could help remove PFAS chemicals from water. The team designed a solution called a magnetic fluorinated polymer sorbent which, when added to contaminated water, coats the PFAS molecules. This makes them magnetic, so then it’s a relatively simple process to use a magnet to attract the pollutants and separate them from the water.

In tests with small samples of PFAS-laden water, the team found that the technique could remove over 95% of most PFAS molecules, including over 99% of GenX – a particularly problematic chemical – within 30 seconds.

Plenty of teams have investigated ways to break down PFAS, usually involving catalysts triggered by UV light or heat. Others have made use of hydrogen or supercritical water.

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lightsails t1_j5k7gmd wrote

This is incredible. A recent study I read found extremely high levels of PFOS/PFOA in lake and river fish through out the US. Here are a few tidbits from that study: -Consuming 1 fish is the equivalent to drinking water that is 12,000x the safe limit for PFOS for a month straight -The average fish fillet was found to contain 11,800 ng/kg PFOS from the great lakes, the lifetime safe limit is 0.004 ng/kg. That's 2,950,000x the safe lifetime limit for the consumption of one fish.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935122024926?via%3Dihub

This is something that needs immediate attention and had me staying away from fish. One thing to note is the study did collect most samples from bass close to larger populations, but still the results are alarming.

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letmeinmannnnn t1_j5m981z wrote

Are they high in all fish in the world? Or mainly lakes in the US?

I buy farmed salmon from Scotland, I'm wondering if they're high in that

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leviathing t1_j5mlvi2 wrote

Stay away from fish farmed near military bases or airports. Otherwise you’re probably fine.

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lightsails t1_j5ndzto wrote

PFOS/PFOA has been used rigorously in so many products for 70ish years. It really is in everything. I work in environmental consulting and when we sample for it I need to make sure staff don't shower the day before as a lot of shampoos/body washes have PFOS/PFOA in it, you can't wear waterproof jackets, the list goes on. The fact is it's bioaccumulating in fish (along with many persistent pollutants) which makes sense as rivers/streams/oceans is where our waste ends up. Even though I live on the west coast of Canada, far from where the study was conducted, even if the fish here have a fraction of the amount of PFOS/PFOA that is still way past the lifetime limit according to the EPA.

But really if it's not this contaminant in fish it's something else I suppose. Depressing but is anything really clean anymore?

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letmeinmannnnn t1_j5nvrc5 wrote

Yeah I was thinking the same, we are being poisoned in one way or another and there's no avoiding pollutant, there's always something, we just have to hope our bodies are able to remove some of the burden in order to not become sick, very depressing times we live in.

And thanks for your comment, it looks like I'll be ditching my salmon I eat, sad times.

I wonder if I can find a lab that tests for this and send a sample of the salmon I buy to them, i guess any amount is too much tho so results will still mean I can't eat it

I checked and my water filter removes 99% of them so that's a start I guess

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FeloniousSausage t1_j5nx5qd wrote

I'm curious what water filter you have, as many don't remove these chemicals.

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letmeinmannnnn t1_j5o4z7j wrote

It's a Zero water filter, Zero is the brand, there's tests proving it to remove heavy metals, micro plastics and also PFOS / PFOA.

A Reverse osmosis system will remove them too if you want to go hardcore on your filtering system

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Legitimate_Bat3240 t1_j5lejno wrote

Wouldn't this make the fish great filters? Would the fish be more economical to use that the magnetic liquid?

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TheThingsWeMake t1_j5lhlav wrote

You'd have to remove the fish from the foodchain/ecosystem once they absorbed the chemicals in that case (and not eat them), which is probably not feasible or ideal.

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Ferociousfeind t1_j5lhynn wrote

Well, then what do we do with the fish? Just not sell it to customers? That'd put a big strain on the fishing industry, which may push them to cut corners and do more ecological damage to the environment to make ends meet

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Legitimate_Bat3240 t1_j5lldy4 wrote

Breed them for more filter fish then dispose of them? Idk, just a thought that I haven't put any time into

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Ferociousfeind t1_j5lsklz wrote

It's good to talk things out to help develop ideas. What if the fish become invasive, for example? It invariably happens, see all the times we accidentally introduced X species (usually rat) to non-native lands, then intentionally introduced Y species (bird or cat most often) to deal with X, and instead X and Y are both flourishing, devastating the local ecosystem.

Biological solutions are almost always dangerous and difficult to control like that, unfortunately.

Magnets don't reproduce, so generally there won't be magnet-outbreaks, you know?

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lintinmypocket t1_j5lphlp wrote

Catch the fish, process the concentrated chemicals out of them, then sell the fish.

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bitcoins t1_j5nf40e wrote

Stick magnets on the fish

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jnelsoni t1_j5nv7ht wrote

Then take the contamination from the fish that gets sucked out by a magnet and shoot it into outer space.

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Folknasty t1_j5jn2yy wrote

This is pretty awesome, especially the success rate. Sounds like it might be expensive though.

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l0gicowl t1_j5jqvi7 wrote

Everything is expensive at first, until it's scaled up enough to be relatively cheap. Well done Aussies

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Electrorocket t1_j5jqoe0 wrote

The good thing is most water treatment plants already have UV emitters, so part of the cost is already spent if they can be retrofitted to work with another system that was mentioned in the article.

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notreal088 t1_j5lpj3c wrote

I really hope that it’s easy to reproduce and cheap to produce. The number of forever chemicals in drinking water and even meat is worry some.

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