SBIR-STTR Award

This SBIR addresses EPA’s need for improved sampling and analysis technologies to detect Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS). PFAS are used in firefighting sprays, at airports, and for wild fires, and have been used in textile treatments (e.g., it is a component in Scotchgard). It is estimated that 65 million Americans are at risk of PFAS exposure in their drinking water. Seacoast proposes a product to reduce cost per-sample analysis by implementing a disposable cartridge and optical detection. The cartridge will contain the necessary chemicals to convert PFAS in a water sample to optically active species detected using portable spectrophotometry. The cartridges are one-time-use plastic (injection molded) components containing reagent pouches, microfluidic channels, and a reaction chamber. The instrument will have an automated test procedure that coordinates reagent injection and analysis using UV light activated absorbance/fluorescence allows detection and quantification. This system combines inexpensive detectors, specialized chemistry, and microfluidics to simplify PFAS analysis, reduce cost-per-sample, and allow portability to remediation field-sites. Cartridges will cost under $100 per test, and high throughput, allows lower cost per sample than traditional analysis. Annual revenues of $6M are projected if the product is used for just 1% of the US public drinking water systems.

Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are used in food packaging, as coatings for cloth (e.g. Scotchgard), firefighting foams, electronics, and industrial and automotive components. Being perfluorinated species, they are engineered to breakdown slowly (half-life >92 years in water), and thus persist for very long times. Their high water-solubility makes them especially dangerous, and much like perchloro- and trichloro-ethylene, i.e. PCE and TCE, they can enter and be transported by groundwater into the drinking water supply. According to the EPA, there are 156,000 public drinking water systems supplying most of the U.S. population’s water, 82% serve the country. Based on detection of PFAS in 94 public water systems, an estimated 65 million Americans may be at risk exposure. In fact, during 2018, the State of Ohio sued DuPont for releasing PFOA into the Ohio River.In Phase I Seacoast successfully demonstrated technical feasibility of a Novel PFAS analyzer, by developing an analysis method for PFAS in water utilizing the mineralization of PFAS to F-, active microdiffusion, and fluorometric detection of F-. The PFAS Analyzer uses recyclable chemistry cartridges with a spectroscopic analyzer that automates sample processing in an easy-to-use menu-driven fieldable system allowing onsite analysis of water, soil and sediment samples. This will allow near real-time analysis, onsite broad-spectrum detection of PFAS chemicals, assessment of the extent of environmental contamination, serve as a presumptive test to warrant further sample collection and confirmatory analysis, and ultimately shorten time between PFAS detection and site remediation.The U.S. invests about $30 billion annually in water supply sanitation. Therefore, the most important markets for the proposed PFA analysis system are (1) municipal water facilities and (2) environmental remediation, site surveyors, and others involved with detecting and identifying contaminants in soils and groundwater. A Commercialization Assessment Report prepared by Foresight, indicates that currently there are no fieldable technologies for the analysis of PFAS. Municipal water supply departments are slow adopters of new technology, and smaller cities/counties tend to use private labs. Additionally, large companies like 3M generally hire environmental engineering firms rather than buy technology and the U.S. military has substantial funding for investigation, remediation, research into new detection and clean-up technologies, and also hire environmental engineering firms. Due to these market characteristics, partnership with an environmental engineering firm or a potential startup that provides field analysis of environmental samples and laboratory testing when necessary are viable options for commercialization of the proposed PFAS Analyzer.