Project description DEENESFRITPL Removing perfluorinated compounds from drinking water and groundwater Perfluorinated compounds are a group of toxic chemicals that persist in the environment for long periods. These man-made chemicals have been detected in drinking water and groundwater, raising serious concerns about human health. So far, advanced oxidation processes, including Fenton reagents, ozone oxidants, ultraviolet light or catalysts, have shown limited success in reducing and removing these chemicals. The EU-funded PFCsByPlasCat project will test an alternative treatment option known as non-thermal plasmas that produces several reactive species at a time. Various nanocatalysts will be tested, including boron-doped graphene oxide, to maximise the efficiency of the novel hybrid plasma–catalyst process. Real samples of contaminated groundwater will be tested to validate the process. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective The extensive use of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in many industrial/commercial applications, as surfactants, emulsifiers, etc., and their high chemical stability are responsible for their ubiquitous presence in the environment. Specifically, the contamination of groundwater and drinking water supplies by perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) is raising great concern as more data on PFCs toxicity in humans and wildlife is becoming available. Thus, a parallel surge in monitoring campaigns and in the search for innovative water treatment technologies for PFCs is required. Since PFCs are highly resistant to degradation by standard chemical and biological processes, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are being considered and, including Fenton, ozone and UV irradiation with catalysts, applied so far with limited success. Among innovative AOPs, air non-thermal plasmas (NTP), which produce several reactive species at a time, have been recently tested for the treatment of PFOA/PFOS yielding promising results. The proposed research aims to advance the state of art by developing an innovative treatment process for PFCs in which NTP is applied in combination with novel boron-doped graphene oxide (B-GO) nano photocatalysts. The catalysts synthesized and characterized by the Researcher will be tested on prepared solutions of PFOA and PFOS using various NTP reactors which are available in the beneficiary laboratory. The best catalyst-reactor combination will thus be identified; conditions and parameters will be optimized to maximize the synergy between plasma and catalyst and the efficiency of the novel hybrid plas-cat process. Real samples of contaminated groundwater will be tested to verify the process applicability to complex matrices. For excellence of research, basic guidelines will be drawn and disseminated for implementing an efficient hybrid plas-cat process in view of auspicable scaling-up and technology transfer to stakeholders. Fields of science engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringwater treatment processesdrinking water treatment processesnatural scienceschemical sciencescatalysisphotocatalysisengineering and technologynanotechnologynano-materialstwo-dimensional nanostructuresgraphenenatural scienceschemical sciencesorganic chemistrynatural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrymetalloids Keywords Non-thermal Plasma Cold Plasma Emerging Organic Pollutants Perfluorooctanesulfonate Perfluorooctanoic acid Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) Engineered nanoparticles Boron doped Graphene Oxide Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Main Programme H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility Topic(s) MSCA-IF-2019 - Individual Fellowships Call for proposal H2020-MSCA-IF-2019 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF) Coordinator UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI PADOVA Net EU contribution € 183 473,28 Address VIA 8 FEBBRAIO 2 35122 Padova Italy See on map Region Nord-Est Veneto Padova Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 183 473,28