Top topics – PFAS
The debate surrounding per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is highly dynamic. On the one hand, there are a wide range of applications; on the other, significant environmental problems and contaminated sites. Since the regulatory proposal put forward by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in 2023, the debate has intensified further. An editorial by Markus Große Ophoff and Sebastian Hasenstab-Riedel in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Free access via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/rethinking-pfas-wissenschaft-ist-die-basis-4159452).
Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) can be detected in water bodies, animals, plants and humans – and concentrations have been rising steadily for decades. How does TFA enter the environment, how harmful is it, and where is action needed to prevent further releases? Article by Annette Bitsch, Hubertus Brunn, Stefan Hahn, Markus Große Ophoff, Michael Müller, Martin Scheringer, Klaus Günter Steinhäuser and Thomas Ternes in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Free access via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/mobil-persistent-gefaehrlich-4156722).
Chemical compounds can be produced quickly, sustainably and in a resource-efficient manner using mechanical energy. Nanoporous organic scaffold structures produced in a ball mill are suitable as filters for removing per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances from water. Article by Maroof Arshadul Hoque, Jan Lisec and Franziska Emmerling in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Free access via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/mit-gruener-synthese-zu-sauberem-wasser-4154760).
On 7 and 8 April, the GDCh’s PFAS think tank, in collaboration with the Collaborative Research Centre 1349 ‘Fluorine-Specific Interactions’ at the Free University of Berlin. Article by Ruth Bieringer, Sebastian Riedel and Markus Große Ophoff in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/pfastagung-in-berlin-4152250).
A study by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) shows: At the temperatures and residence times typically used in European waste incineration plants, fluoropolymer waste causes hardly any emissions of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Article by Hans-Joachim Gehrmann and Anna Maria Holfelder in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/fast-vollstaendig-verbrannt-4147330)
Business, politics and science are debating whether it is justified to ban per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the EU as an entire group of substances. The example of oximes illustrates the consequences of assessing and restricting the use of individual substances rather than an entire group of substances. Article by Clemens Magerkurth and Reinhold Rühl in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/einzelstoffe-oder-gruppen-regulieren-4145565 )
Per- and polyfluorinated hydrocarbons can barely withstand temperatures above 1000 °C. Electro-oxidation and plasma processes also partially destroy these substances. Researchers are also attempting to eliminate them using boron nitride or supercritical water. Further avenues for this include the non-fluorinated oxygen- or sulphur-containing residues of these substances. Article by Christian Ehrensberger in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Free access via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/die-suche-nach-der-achillesferse-4140286
The proposed EU ban on all per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances also affects the outdoor industry, as these substances are used in breathable membranes and water-repellent textile coatings. Bettina Roth, Head of Quality Management at outdoor equipment manufacturer Vaude in Tettnang, Baden-Württemberg, explains how this works without these substances. Interview by Uta Neubauer in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/interview-endverbraucher-haben-kritisch-nachgefragt-4138471)
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is preparing regulations on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS for short. According to Juliane Glüge from ETH Zurich, the environmental persistence of these substances alone justifies a comprehensive ban. She represents the European Chemical Society at ECHA meetings dealing with the PFAS ban. Interview by Uta Neubauer in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/regulierung-per-und-polyfluorierter-substanzen-4138463)
The GDCh PFAS Think Tank, which drafted the statement, comprises representatives from GDCh structures in industry and academia: The GDCh Working Group Fluorochemistry (AG F), the GDCh Division of Macromolecular Chemistry (MC), the GDCh Division of Analytical Chemistry (AC), and the Young economic chemists (JuWiChem) of the Association for Chemistry and Economics.
This publication was the subject of heated debate within the GDCh. Among other things, the Board of the GDCh Division of Environmental Chemistry & Ecotoxicology (U&Ö) published a supplement to the GDCh position paper. On the position statement, the addendum and further discussions within the GDCh
There is a lot of talk at the moment about PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). This is because a possible ban on PFAS in the European Union is under discussion. In the September issue of *Nachrichten aus der Chemie*, two experts discuss a ban on PFAS. Read the article.
Per- and polyfluorinated hydrocarbons are persistent environmental toxins. Routine methods for chemical analysis and biomonitoring are currently being developed on an increasing scale. Article by Christian Ehrensberger in Nachrichten aus der Chemie. (Access for members via the GDCh app at https://gdch.app/article/wildschweinleber-als-bioindikator-4134838 )
This could be a proposal with far-reaching consequences for the chemical industry and for us as consumers. This is because a possible ban on PFAS – specific per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances – is currently being discussed in the European Union. An accessible article by Dr Jörg Wetterau in Faszination Chemie (Read the article)