Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Electrochemical Extraction and Remediation of PFAS in Soils
EPA Contract Number: 68HERD19C0023Title: Electrochemical Extraction and Remediation of PFAS in Soils
Investigators: Lee, Katherine
Small Business: Faraday Technology, Inc.
EPA Contact: Richards, April
Phase: I
Project Period: May 1, 2019 through October 31, 2019
Project Amount: $100,000
RFA: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) - Phase I (2019) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR): Phase 1 (2019) , Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) , SBIR - Cleanup of Contaminated Sediments
Description:
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
Conclusions:
Based on the Phase I data and analysis, Faraday anticipates that the combination of electrokinetic methods for extraction of PFAS from soils and pulsed FARADAYIC® ElectroCatalysis for destruction of these PFAS embodies a revolutionary, novel capability for PFAS remediation in soils. The PFAS destruction technology based on FARADAYIC® ElectroCatalysis is compact, significantly more energy- and cost-efficient than the majority of competitor technologies, and can be adapted directly into electrokinetic apparatus in a variety of configurations. More work is required in order to establish specific operating parameters for both the electrokinetics and FARADAYIC® ElectroCatalysis technology components, and to demonstrate the tandem technologies in contexts of interest to Phase II/III commercialization partner(s), as part of a larger-scale demonstration of the technology.
Terran Corp. has executed multiple projects for soil remediation using its electrokinetics technology, and the associated costs are well known and reasonable. The economic analysis performed as part of this Phase I SBIR program strongly supports the relevance of the FARADAYIC® ElectroCatalysis approach as an augmentation to electrokinetic PFAS extraction providing efficient, cost-effective PFAS destruction. For two hypothetical soil remediation case studies subjected to cost analysis, the 20-year annualized costs to reduce PFAS levels to below the 70-ppt EPA Lifetime Health Advisory limit seem reasonable for typical remediation applications. The intrinsically scalable nature of electrochemical hardware makes it highly likely that both larger- and smaller-scale applications would also find the technology economically appealing. Discussions with our commercialization partners [Fraunhofer USA Center for Coatings and Diamond Technologies (East Lansing, MI), U.S. Ecology (Livonia, MI), Jacobs Engineering (Dallas, TX), Coventya (Brooklyn Heights, OH), and CONDIAS (Itzehoe, Germany)] all support the appeal of the tandem electrokinetic extraction and FARADAYIC® ElectroCatalysis technologies as a cost-effective, efficient, scalable technology solution for the remediation of PFAS in soils.
SBIR Phase II:
Electrochemical Extraction and Remediation of PFAS in Soils | Final ReportThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.