Mineralogical controls on PFAS and anthropogenic anions in subsurface soils and aquifers
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) migrate into the environment through various means, e.g., soil-amendment impurities and ambient atmospheric deposition, potentially resulting in vegetative uptake and migration to groundwater. Existing approaches for modeling sorption of PFAS commonly treat soil as an undifferentiated homogeneous medium, with distribution constants (e.g., K<sub>d</sub>, K<sub>oc</sub>) generated empirically using surface soils. Considering the limited mineral variety expected in weathered geologic media, PFAS mobility can be better understood by accounting for predictable mineral assemblages that are ubiquitously distributed in US soils. Here we explore the role of minerals and electrostatic sorption in controlling PFAS mobility in subsurface settings at contaminated agricultural sites by measuring geochemical parameters and PFAS, and calculating pH-dependent mineral surface charges through full soil and aquifer columns. These data suggest subsurface mobility of short-chain PFAS largely is controlled by aluminum-oxide mineral(oid) electrostatic sorption, whereas long-chain PFAS mobility is controlled by organic matter and air-water interfacial area.
Authors
- Oluwaseun Adeyemi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7287-970X)
- Michael Neill
- Marina G. Evich (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2386-0682)
- Donna A. Glinski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7934-5666)
- Mike Cyterski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8630-873X)
- Brian C Striggow
- José Roberto Ferreira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9657-4698)
- Brad Acrey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5969-2222)
- Diana Burdette
- Du Yung Kim (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3245-8537)
- W. Matthew Henderson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2800-8536)
- John W. Washington (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9952-600X)
- Paul A. Schroeder (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2557-4644)
- C. Jason Williams (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6289-4789)
- Kathy Simmons
- Samuel B Cohen
- Malcolm Grieve
Institutions
- South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (US)
- University of Georgia (US)
- Shepherd Center (US)
- National Center for Environmental Assessment (EPA) (US)
- Environmental Protection Agency (IE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-04-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58040-w
- Citations
- 17
- Primary Topic
- Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 14.62
Funders
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education
- Natural Resources Conservation Service