Clarkson University Receives Nearly $1.5 Million EPA Grant to Develop PFAS Detection Technology

Clarkson University has received a grant worth nearly $1.5 million from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for research to develop and demonstrate nanosensor technology that has the potential to detect, monitor, and degrade PFAS in groundwater or surface water that may be used as drinking water sources.

The project builds on nanosensing technology developed in the laboratory of Silvana Andreescu, Clarkson University Visiting Research Professor and Chair of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Florida International University who leads the effort, and will work with an interdisciplinary team which includes Clarkson’s Jean S. Newell Distinguished Professor of Engineering Thomas Holsen, along with Professors from the Stevens Institute of Technology, University of Nebraska, and University of Buffalo.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pose a significant threat to the environment and human health. While widely recognized for their adverse effects, rapid and effective strategies to identify, measure, and degrade PFAS remains a challenge. Using nanotechnology tools, the goal of the proposed project is to develop an integrated nanosensor technology for field detection and degradation of PFAS. The sensor will be the first field-ready PFAS-detection technology available that can be used to determine PFAS exposure and evaluate effectiveness of remediation technologies.

The outcome will be a new portable nanosensing technology, developed as a stand-alone unit with interchargeable sensing and degradation units, to rapidly estimate the level of PFAS exposure and the effectiveness of remediation efforts. These sensors are easy to use and inexpensive. This development represents a significant opportunity for efficient and cost-effective monitoring of PFAS to reduce the effect of PFAS exposure, enabling sustainable environmental practices and rapid intervention.

“We are so excited that the Environmental Protection Agency has the great work our researchers are focused on here at Clarkson University. We are also grateful for the leadership of U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer and our representatives for being a champion for Clarkson on a national stage,” said Kelly Chezum, Vice President for External Relations. “This grant from the EPA is the latest in a growing number of acknowledgements that, when it comes to PFAS technology, Clarkson is a leader.”