Analysis of PFAS
Perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS) Perfluoropentane sulfonic acid (PFPS) Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) Perfluoroheptane sulfonic acid (PFHpS) Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) Perfluorononane sulfonic acid (PFNS) Perfluorodecane sulfonic acid (PFDS) Perfluoroundecane sulfonic acid (PFUnDS) Perfluorododecane sulfonic acid (PFDoDS) Perfluorotridecane sulfonic acid (PFTrDS)
Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) Perfluoro pen tanoic acid (PF P A) Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA) Perfluorohe pt anoic acid (PFH p A) Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA) Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA) Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoDA) Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA)
1
11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
20
Table 1: List of 20 individual PFAS included in the revised Drinking Water Directive (EU) 2020/2184
The analysis of PFAS presents some considerable challenges for various reasons, one being the actual number of substances defined under PFAS, as well as the physicochemical properties and concentration of the substances in environmental samples. Accurate and robust analytical methods are essential for the detection and quantification of PFAS in water and will assist in the understanding on the prevalence and transportability of these compounds between different environments e.g., between soil and groundwater.
A report was prepared by the Environment Agency through NORMAN (February 2022) and collated information about Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (LC- MS), sum of PFAS, Total PFAS, Non-target screening (NTS) methods, Total Oxidizable Precursor (TOP) assays, Total Fluorine (TF) and Extractable organofluorine (EOF). [18] In figure 4, (NORMAN Network, 2022) the reported ranges for limits of detections of various PFAS are shown with drinking water, surface water and animals as examples. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed, validated, and published three methods to support the analysis of 29 PFAS in drinking water, Method 533, 537 and 537.1. In addition, EPA’s Office of Water, in partnership with the Department of Defence (DoD) Research and Development Program, released Method 1633 in January 2024, which was then revised in December in 2024, reissued as 1633:A. This is a single laboratory validated method to test for 40 PFAS in wastewater, surface water, groundwater, soil, sediment, landfill leachate but also fish tissue. The European Commission has issued a Notice about Technical guidelines regarding methods of analysis for monitoring of PFAS in water intended for human consumption. [ 25 ]
Figure 4 Reported ranges for PFCAs, PFSAs and HFPO-DA limits of detection (LOD) in (a) drinking water (b) fresh surface water and in (c) animals. Red full and dotted lines represent the regulatory limits from the revised Drinking Water Directive of total PFAS (0.5 µg/L) and sum of 20 PFAS (0.1 µg/L). Blue lines represent the Water Framework Directive AA-EQS for PFOS in surface water and in fish [19]
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