DEVELOPMENT OF A PORTABLE, BIOCHAR-BASED ELECTROCHEMICAL PFAS SENSING DEVICE TO PROTECT RURAL WATER RESOURCES

Per and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) are chemically and biologically resistant organic compounds that are persistent bioaccumulative and highly toxic. Owing to their widespread contamination of public drinking water supplies on March 14 2023 the Biden-Harris administration proposed new national drinking water standards for six PFAS compounds. The newly proposed standards limit the measurable concentration of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) to four (4) parts per trillion (ppt). Beyond direct human consumption of PFAS-contaminated drinking water the use of PFAS- impacted rural water resources used to meet livestock drinking water demands has led to numerous cases of agricultural product contamination (e.g. tainted dairy products) as well as growing public concern over fish meat and poultry quality. Similarly continued use of PFAS-impacted irrigation water has increased contamination of rural public drinking water supplies and soil quality further exacerbating human exposure to these toxic pollutants. The overarching goal of the STTR Phase II research application is refinement and commercial deployment of the biochar-based electrochemical PFAS detection technology. To achieve this goal commercialization efforts shall focus on gaining regulatory approval of the technology as an alternative test procedure (ATP) for compliance certification. The ability to reliably measure PFAS levels using a low-cost portable PFAS detection device facilitates actionable decision-making and allows rural water stakeholders to: 1) rapidly quantify the PFAS in surface water groundwater and reclaimed wastewater resources 2) enhance protection of agricultural product quality from PFAS- contaminated water supplies and 3) generate time-sensitive data needed to support watershed management decisions.