Original story from Rice University (TX, USA). Engineered material uses light to destroy PFAS and other contaminants. Materials scientists at Rice University (TX, USA) and collaborators have developed a material that uses light to break down a range of pollutants in water, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, the ‘forever chemicals’ that have garnered attention for their pervasiveness. The process involves the use of a class of materials known as covalent organic frameworks, or COFs, whose porous structure – and hence high surface area – make them useful in light-driven, or photocatalytic, reactions. When they interact with light, some of the electrons in COF molecules get displaced, forming holes, and this bifurcation of charges is what makes COFs good photocatalysts. According to a study published in Materials Today, the Rice team grew a COF material directly onto a two-dimensional film of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), giving rise to a hybrid supercleansing surface that needs only light in order to cut through tough pollutants, including pharmaceutical waste, dyes and PFAS. “By combining two safe, lightweight materials in a new way, we built a powerful pollution-fighting surface that works quickly, works on many different pollutants and does not rely on metals that could harm the environment,” commented Yifan Zhu, a postdoctoral researcher in Rice’s Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and a first author on the study. “This matters because it offers a cleaner, cheaper and more sustainable way to protect our water.” PFAS versus the gut microbiome Certain human gut…
