Plasma Water Treatment of Emerging Contaminants: Assessing PFAS and 1,4- Dioxane in New Jersey

Abstract

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) wants to assess alternative technologies for the treatment of emerging contaminants. The primary contaminants of concern are state-regulated and include perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and 1,4-dioxane (1,4-D). Purafide evaluated the initial concentrations and plasma-based destruction of these emerging contaminants in wastewater influent, wastewater effluent, leachate-impacted groundwater, and landfill leachate. Purafide performed time-resolved, bench-scale studies and varied the operating conditions to estimate the treatment efficacy and cost. Withstanding matrix effects, plasma demonstrated effective destruction of target contaminants, precursors, and transformation products. Purafide determined that the most efficient treatment occurred in landfill leachate and leachate-impacted groundwater samples. Future work could involve studying additional matrices and deploying pilots with NJDEP.