US WRF Launches Project to Evaluate Powdered Activated Carbon for Removing PFAS from Wastewater

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Water Research Foundation (WRF) has launched Project 5388 to evaluate powdered activated carbon (PAC) as a cost-effective solution for removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from treated wastewater. Led by Carollo Engineers, the study, titled "Efficacy of PAC for PFAS Removal from Wastewater Effluent," will provide water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) with data and decision-support tools to assess PAC as a near-term treatment option amid evolving PFAS regulations.

PFAS, often called "forever chemicals," are facing increasingly stringent regulation due to their persistence in the environment and high removal costs. Water resource recovery facilities are passive receivers of PFAS, which enter wastewater streams through residential and industrial discharges. While many PFAS treatment evaluations focus on drinking water and reuse applications, the more complex chemical matrix in wastewater—including organic matter, solids, and competing compounds—can reduce adsorption performance and increase implementation challenges.

This 16-month study, supported by multiple participating utilities and university partners, aims to provide utilities with a deeper understanding of PAC performance under wastewater conditions, as well as the operational and financial requirements for using PAC in PFAS effluent polishing. The project's goals include generating wastewater-specific PAC feasibility data across multiple facilities, providing infrastructure and cost guidance for PAC dosing in secondary and tertiary treatment, and identifying follow-up research and scale-up steps needed for broader implementation. Additionally, the project will equip WRRFs, engineers, and regulators with tools to evaluate technical, logistical, and economic feasibility across different scales and regions.

Research activities include a literature review and laboratory-scale jar tests using wastewater samples from multiple participating utilities in the United States and Canada. The jar tests will evaluate the removal effectiveness of various PAC products at different dosages, both before and after secondary and tertiary treatment. Testing will be conducted through a collaboration between utility in-house capabilities and the Carollo Water Applied Research Center (Water ARC).

Dr. Michelle Young, Carollo's senior wastewater technology expert and the project's principal investigator, stated that utilities need reliable, wastewater-specific information to evaluate near-term PFAS treatment options. This project will help WRRFs determine optimal PAC dosing points and clarify remaining implementation questions around dosage, timing, and cost that need to be answered before moving to pilot or full-scale applications. By leveraging Water ARC's applied research capabilities, the project team will provide reliable performance data and practical guidance to help utilities move from feasibility assessment to implementation with greater confidence.

Upon completion of the study, the project team will deliver a final guidance report, a fact sheet, and cost and performance evaluation tools. Research findings will be shared through WRF webcasts and industry conference presentations.