{"id":11024,"date":"2025-03-21T11:42:54","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T10:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uni.lu\/lcsb-en\/?post_type=news&p=11024"},"modified":"2025-07-04T11:08:45","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T09:08:45","slug":"forever-chemicals-diving-into-troubled-waters","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.uni.lu\/lcsb-en\/news\/forever-chemicals-diving-into-troubled-waters\/","title":{"rendered":"Forever chemicals, diving into troubled waters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>\n\n\n

On World Water Day<\/a>, let\u2019s talk about the \u201cforever chemicals\u201d that made a splash when the Forever Pollution Project published the map of nearly 23,000 contaminated sites all over Europe<\/a> and again when the Pesticide Action Network Europe revealed that drinking water samples from 11 EU countries showed the widespread presence of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA)<\/a>. Prof. Emma Schymanski and Dr Federica Piras, researchers at the university focusing on chemicals in our environment, help us take a closer look at the facts, explore the long history of these compounds and reflect on the current situation in our water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nChemicals with a long history<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The term \u201cforever chemicals\u201d is used to refer to a large category of synthetic chemicals called per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). They are characterised by a very stable bond formed by carbon and fluorine in their structure. The connection between these two elements, one of the strongest in organic chemistry, does not break easily, hence the label \u201cforever chemicals\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PFAS were first documented in the late 1930s and are now widely used for their properties as water and grease repellents and their resistance to heat. They can be found in products as diverse as wall paint, waterproof fabric, mobile phone screens and cosmetics. As they resist degradation and are easily transported in the environment, the health effects of the legacy PFAS, the substances originally used by the industry, have been extensively studied. Their hazardous nature was publicised through examples such as the DuPont scandal, when a plant released perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) for years and contaminated local water supply in Parkersburg, West Virginia (USA), a story that inspired the movie Dark Waters. Two legacy PFAS, called PFOS and PFOA, have been linked to disorders such as cancers, premature birth and thyroid diseases, and their use has been regulated by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants<\/a> since 2009 (PFOS; restriction) and 2019 (PFOA; elimination).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnfortunately, their regulation triggered a mechanism known as \u201cregrettable substitution\u201d, where industries developed new compounds to replace the legacy PFAS,\u201d explains Prof. Emma Schymanski<\/a>, head of the Environmental Cheminformatics<\/a> group at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine<\/a> (LCSB). \u201cOver time, we have seen that some of the shorter chain PFAS that replaced PFOS and PFOA also remain in the environment and cause undesirable health effects.\u201d Today, according to the latest definitions, it is estimated that there are over 7 million chemicals belonging to the PFAS category<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n\n

\n \n
\n

\nTFA, an emerging problem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n
\n \n\"\"\n

\n 3D representation of the chemical structure of TFA (credits C2DH, 3D molecules) <\/p>\n <\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

Among the numerous \u201cforever chemicals\u201d researched over the years, one is now gaining increased attention: Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA). Manufactured for industry but also occurring as the result of the degradation of other PFAS, its concentration in the environment is increasing at an alarming rate. \u201cThere are countless potential sources of TFA, many of which are still unknown, and we are also lacking studies on its effects,\u201d details Prof. Schymanski. \u201cWhat we do know is that if this trend continues and, worse, if adverse health effects are found, then we will be faced with a massive challenge.\u201d As a matter of fact, TFA is extremely difficult \u2013 and thus expensive \u2013 to remove, especially if there are multiple diffuse sources of TFA entering our environment. A recent investigation by French journalists estimated that cleaning up Europe’s PFAS pollution would cost between \u20ac95 billion and \u20ac2,000 billion over 20 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n