by Lidija Raicevic, Vice President and General Manager, Ion Chromatography and Sample Preparation Business Unit at Thermo Fisher Scientific
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as "forever chemicals," pose an escalating environmental and public health concern, largely due to the unknown extent of their impact. These synthetic chemicals are ubiquitous in our environment, food supply, and everyday consumer products. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 97% of the U.S. population carries PFAS in their blood, and the 2023 U.S. Geological Survey estimates that at least 45% of the nation's tap water contains one or more types of PFAS.
The persistence and bioaccumulation of PFAS make them one of the most challenging contaminants to overall environmental and human health today. These chemicals are increasingly linked to serious health conditions, including cancer, diabetes, and obesity, underscoring the need for precise testing to mitigate their impact.
Evolution of PFAS and Demand for Testing
PFAS were discovered nearly a century ago and are widely used in everything from nonstick pans to cosmetics, food packaging, and firefighting foams. Only in recent years has our understanding of these chemicals' environmental and health impacts accelerated, with the full extent still unknown in many cases.
As such, the demand for a deeper understanding of where PFAS is present in our daily lives has never been higher. Analytical laboratories are increasingly tasked with identifying the presence and concentration of PFAS in environmental samples, such as water, soil, and air, as well as in food products or biological samples to help better understand exposure risk as new discoveries come to light.
Regulatory requirements also drive the growing need for testing at regional, state, national, and global levels. Regulatory bodies worldwide continue to monitor the growing body of evidence that uncovers the chemicals' effects and update guidelines for safe compound levels accordingly to protect public safety and standardize analytical methods across laboratories.
Targeted and Non-Targeted Analytical Testing
The most common forms of PFAS testing are targeted and non-targeted analytical workflows. Both approaches offer their own sets of benefits depending on the type of material being analyzed and the desired outcome, and largely depends on the level of PFAS screening or analysis needed. Whether the laboratory is testing for known or unknown chemicals or a mixture of both will determine the proper workflow.
Targeted workflows, for example, involve quantifying known analytes or chemicals outlined by a regulatory body like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Because of potential public health repercussions, these testing workflows are generally more routine, standardized, and time sensitive.
For example, the EPA is increasingly releasing standardized analytical methods and testing protocols for drinking water, non-potable water, and soil. To meet EPA's standardized testing protocols and requirements, laboratories must rely on highly sensitive and precise instrumentation, sample prep, and extraction methods for specific known compounds in this instance.
However, given the diversity of PFAS variants, there are still thousands of unknown chemicals and compounds with unknown impact. Non-targeted workflows are essential to detect known and unknown PFAS analytes that are not on regulators' target lists. Non-targeted testing plays a particularly important role in keeping up with the latest research and recommendations, as well as identifying harmful unregulated substances that pose significant risks to the public or environment.
For example, a research university that Thermo Fisher Scientific supports conducted PFAS analyses on raw and drinking water samples across more than 400 sites to monitor known and unknown PFAS pollutants within the environment. The analysis found many unregulated PFAS compounds in the water at such high concentrations that they exceeded health advisory levels. However, because these compounds weren’t on a specific watch list, they otherwise wouldn't have been detected without the use of a non-targeted analytical workflow.
Role of Mass Spec in PFAS Detection
As the scientific community's understanding of PFAS increases, laboratories are seeking modern analytical techniques and flexible workflows to align with evolving testing and regulatory requirements.
Mass spectrometry is a powerful analytical tool for identifying and quantifying a wide range of chemical compounds, including PFAS. Its sensitivity and reliability make it indispensable in detecting trace amounts of persistent chemicals anywhere from drinking water, soil, food, consumer products, and biological samples.
One of the most significant advances is in high-resolution mass spectrometry, which supports both targeted and non-targeted analysis to detect known and unknown PFAS compounds without predefined target lists. This is crucial as it provides the flexibility to identify emerging harmful substances and comply with evolving regulatory requirements without constantly redesigning testing workflows.
In addition to adopting mass spectrometers that provide the required robustness, sensitivity, and throughput to analyze PFAS, laboratories must combine them with other modern analytical techniques to keep up with evolving regulations and the discovery of new contaminants. Strong sample preparation, efficient extraction methods via ion or liquid chromatography, and data analysis with mass spectrometry are necessary to separate, identify, and quantify known or unknown PFAS in samples and meet required safety standards.
Automating and Advancing PFAS Analysis
As laboratories are expected to comply with upcoming regulations, the number of PFAS samples will consistently and dramatically increase over the next few years. Laboratories will be expected to test thousands of samples to meet ongoing and future regulations, such as the EPA's final rule for six PFAS in drinking water announced earlier this year.
Laboratories face significant turnaround challenges they must overcome, and automation will be crucial for maintaining efficiency and keeping up with demand. Automating workflows allows lab professionals to focus on critical activities like data review and reporting to continue managing and analyzing the high volume of samples while maintaining regulatory compliance and enhancing the analysis's accuracy, reliability, and reproducibility.
Future-Proof PFAS Detection and Testing
As global efforts and regulations to address PFAS continue, driven by emerging research and technological advances, the impact of these chemicals on our health and environment will truly be known.
The demand for faster, more reliable, and versatile testing methods will grow as testing and regulatory requirements evolve. By adopting robust sample prep, sensitive instrumentation, and efficient extraction methods, laboratories can adopt targeted and non-targeted analytical workflows to remain agile, anticipate regulatory changes, mitigate risks, and, most importantly, protect human and environmental health.
About the author
Lidija Raicevic currently serves as the Vice President and General Manager of the Ion Chromatography and Sample Prep Business Unit at Thermo Fisher Scientific since May 2023. Previously, Raicevic held several leadership positions at Cepheid, including Vice President of Strategic Marketing and Senior Director of Global Marketing for Emerging, Pharma, and New Markets, from August 2021 to May 2023. Prior experience at Thermo Fisher Scientific spans nearly two decades, encompassing roles such as Senior Director of Marketing and Product Management in the Genetic Science Division, as well as leadership in sales and support for the Human Identification Business. Raicevic’s early career includes a position as a Clinical Research Scientist at the National Cancer Research Centre, focusing on oncogenetics. Raicevic holds a Master of Biological Sciences in Molecular Biology and Oncogenetics and a Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology, both from the University of Belgrade.