Synergen Met Environment has completed a 6-month field trial with a Queensland Council to remove and destroy PFAS from leachate at a landfill site. This waste facility’s leachate consistently contains levels of PFAS which exceed Australian Department of Health and PFAS National Environmental Management Plan (NEMP) guidelines.

Waste Treatment

Landfill leaches with high PFAS loading were treated.

Processes

Environment utilised its foam-fractionation technology to concentrate and remove PFAS molecules.

Outcomes

• Continuous operation of 1,000 L per hour.

• PFAS-free steam for discharge with individual PFAS species concentration recorded well below the Australian NEMP-PFAS guideline levels for drinking water.

• Recovered PFAS was successfully concentrated into a waste stream (concentration factor of >1850). This is economically viable for safe destruction by Environment’s licensed plasma destruction facility.

• Destroyed PFAS molecules were primarily converted into harmless solids (sodium fluoride) and non-condensable gases. Solids were removed via a scrubbing process, while gases were further purified by passing them through an activated carbon bed adsorber.

• Minimal CO2 emissions.

The graph below visually represents the successful removal of PFAS to levels well below detectable limits and significantly below NEMP guideline values.

PFAS & Environment News