We offer PFAS analysis of soil and biosolids (dried sludge from wastewater treatment plants, that can be applied as fertilizer on farms) samples using EPA method 1633. This method includes the analysis of 40 different PFAS compounds. First, the PFAS compounds are extracted from the solids. The extract is then treated with various sorbents to remove interfering compounds and then subjected to Liquid Chromatography/Tandem Mass Spectrometry for analysis.

Clients for PFAS in soil and biosolids

Our clients range from research institutions and municipal wastewater treatment plants. We have helped clients at two wastewater treatment plants grasp the differences in PFAS profiles and amounts we found and enabled them to take corrective action.

A 3 year-long research Project on PFAS on farming soil: We conducted a study, one of the few to date on working farms in the US, investigating PFAS contamination in ten farms treated with biosolids using a paired control-treatment approach. Biosolids are nutrient-rich and inexpensive soil amendments, however, if the biosolids contain PFAS which are known to be toxic, mobile and bioaccumulative, they can have lasting negative impacts on agricultural soil and water. Our study showed significantly higher concentrations of PFAS in biosolids-treated soils compared to untreated controls. Soil depth, soil physicochemical properties (e.g., organic matter and pH), and biosolids sources affected concentrations and types of PFAS found in treated soils. While PFAS precursors were present in biosolids, they were absent in treated soils, due to biotransformation to terminal perfluoroalkyl products. The detection of shorter-chain PFAS in surface water highlights their greater mobility, raising concerns beyond the boundaries of the biosolids-treated farms. The graph below shows data from testing soils at two different depths and the biosolids that were applied to the soils for PFAS.

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Total Oxidizable Precursor (TOP) Assay

The TOP assay (Total Oxidizable Precursor assay) is a method used to measure PFAS precursors, which are compounds that can transform into terminal PFAS under certain conditions, particularly oxidation. Top assay helps assess the total PFAS burden, including potentially harmful precursors, in environmental samples. TOP assay is increasingly being used in site investigations and management of risk at contaminated sites such as airports, legacy landfills, and superfund sites as well as at wastewater treatment plants by environmental engineering companies, industries producing and using PFAS and real estate developers. TOP assay is also being used to identify the source of PFAS contamination. We used TOP assay in a study funded by the EPA. Grant Number: EM84053101. Contact us to learn more