Forever chemicals PFAS

Research Chemicals & Reference Materials from LGC Standards

Perfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS) are man-made chemicals that are widely used in a variety of industrial and consumer products, including non-stick cookware and fire extinguisher foams. However, concerns have been raised about their persistence in the environment and their potential health and environmental impacts. 

Our partner LGC Standards offers a wide range of perfluoroalkylated substance (PFAS) research chemicals and reference materials.

 

What are PFAS and where are they found?

Per- and Polyfluoroalkylated Substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals used in various industrial applications and consumer products. They are characterised by their strong carbon-fluorine bonds, which provide exceptional resistance to heat, water, and oil. These substances have strong carbon-fluorine bonds, making them ideal for non-stick cookware, water-repellent clothing, firefighting foams, food packaging, and pesticides.

 

Health and environmental concerns

The widespread use of PFAS and their resistance to degradation raise significant health and environmental concerns. PFAS enter the environment through manufacturing, usage, waste disposal, and wastewater. They persist in the environment and over time bioaccumulate in living organisms, earning them the name “forever chemicals”.

Exposure to PFAS has also been associated with a range of adverse health effects: epidemiological studies linking it to liver damage, thyroid disease, decreased fertility, increased cholesterol levels, and a higher risk of certain cancers.

Given these potential health risks, there has been a growing interest in understanding the behaviour of PFAS in the environment, tracking their pathways of human exposure, developing advanced analytical techniques, exploring alternative materials to replace PFAS, evising effective methods for their removal and remediation, and controlling their use to minimise further negative environmental and human health impacts.

 

PFAS Reference Material

Testing is required to prove adherence to global regulations, and for ongoing monitoring of PFAS in the environment. However, it is not without its challenges. There are many factors that can complicate and impact the reliability of analyses performed – including matrix effects, co-elution of similar compounds, concentration, ionisability of compounds, peak resolution, adsorption, identifying new emerging PFAS compounds, and more.

LGC Standards' white paper "Optimising PFAS reference material design for use with liquid chromatography-high resolution accurate mass spectrometry" (LC-HRMS) provides insight into the challenges of PFAS analysis and showcases an interesting study on the stability of long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acid reference material.

 

The wide range of perfluoroalkylated substance (PFAS) research chemicals and reference materials from LGC Standards helps you to accurately identify and quantify PFAS in various samples, thereby supporting the development of effective management strategies and ensuring regulatory compliance.

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