Water, being one of the necessities for survival, can prove to be disastrous for human health if harmful chemicals are present in it. PFAS is a term given to around 4000 kinds of chemicals that were not very long ago used to manufacture utensils for cooking, fire-fighting equipment, and cosmetics. These chemicals were proven to cause birth defects and liver damage. The main cause of concern concerning PFAS is that they tend to persist in the environment for centuries.PFAS chemicals find their way into surrounding water bodies when fire-fighting foams containing PFAS chemicals are used in PFAS Water Treatment.
Stated below are some important Chemicals used in the PFAS Water Treatment:
Granular Activated Carbon(GAC)
Coconut shell forms the raw material to form Granular Activated Carbon. In this process, coconut shells or coal are subjected to intense heat thus leading to the formation of charcoal in granules form.
GAC can be used as a filter in your home. You can either use it at the starting point of a home plumbing system or just before the water travels to a tap placed in your home.
The usage of GAC to remove PFAS does not cause any additional water pollution. You need to take care though that if GAC is inhaled, it can prove fatal for life. This is because an activated carbon after becoming wet reduces the level of oxygen supply present.
Hydrocarbon
Hydrocarbons form the base of the Ion Exchange Process for removing PFAS from water. It has a high success rate for removing PFAS from water. The use of this chemical does not cause further pollution of any kind. Hence there is no follow-up need to treat a wasteful stream of water when the Ion Exchange Process is employed.
The resins formed by hydrocarbons can be used more than once for PFAS Water Treatment. It is used to soften water and eliminate the arsenic elements of polluted water to a large extent. It is also helpful to fight the presence of Blue Baby Syndrome by removing nitrates from streams of water.
Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC)
This chemical used to treat water is prepared by crushing coal to a fine powder after burning it completely. It is effective to separate toxic substances from water as and when the need arises to do so. The water is treated in small batches when this chemical is used. Not much cost is incurred in applying this chemical. Bacteria don’t multiply in the carbon since very little time is devoted to carrying out this method.
PAC can only be used once and hence has to be discarded after usage. It is used to remove bad taste and smell from water.
Conclusion
The use of PFAS chemicals in manufacturing various products has declined substantially. Throughout the world, the governments of various countries have rolled out tentative years by which they would completely stop the usage of these chemicals in their respective countries. Although measures have been taken recently to phase out the usage of these chemicals, a substantial amount of damage has already been done. The water bodies, contaminated by PFAS chemicals are being treated to protect humans from the Ill effects of these chemicals. The membrane system Australia is always ready to remove these chemicals from water.
