Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are known as “forever chemicals” because of their extreme persistence. This persistence is what makes PFAS chemicals so good at what they do, but it’s also what contributes to pollution in a variety of matrices, as well as causing a potential negative impact on human health.
In response, researchers at Stockholm University in Sweden have created a database of PFAS alternatives. The study, published in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology, documents all known uses of PFAS, describes the functions provided by PFAS in these uses, lists potential alternatives that can deliver equivalent or similar functions, and evaluates the suitability of the identified alternatives to replace PFAS.
Altogether, the database lists 530 alternatives—325 applications of PFAS across 18 categories. This includes 162 alternative substances, 163 alternative materials, 128 alternative products, 37 alternative processes, and 40 alternative technologies.
“Based on the information collected, PFAS can be phased out in four applications, which do not require the service they provide, namely, in coating for strings of musical instruments, in certain food packaging when uncoated paper and uncoated paper plates are suitable alternatives, and in lubricants for certain consumer products (e.g., bike chain lubricant),” write the researchers in their paper.
The study also identified 83 applications that currently lack PFAS alternatives, especially in industrial processes like plastic and rubber production. The researchers say this gap presents an opportunity for further research to find realistic replacements that are safe and keep unnecessary forever chemicals out of the environment.
The database has been freely available as an open data set on Zenodo since September 2023, and contingent on available funding it will be continuously updated as more information becomes available. The analyses presented in the newly published study are based on the data accessible in the database as of April 20, 2024.