These models could assist with the development of new technologies and resources for PFAS removal.
Rivers, lakes and oceans worldwide are home to trillions of pieces of plastic pollution that are smaller than five millimeters in length, known as microplastics, and their size allows them to easily enter humans and animals. Some can adsorb and transport other harmful toxicants that pollute waterways, including certain types of a more recently discovered set of toxic "forever chemicals" called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.
There are thousands of types of PFAS in freshwater and saltwater bodies, and testing whether microplastics can absorb each one requires costly, time-consuming and labor-intensive testing. That's why a University of Maine-led team of researchers developed a new type of model for predicting whether any given kind of microplastic would adsorb any specific type of PFAS and at what concentration.