The DOI matches its Crossref record; 36 of the 37 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate aerobic biotransformation in activated sludge of waste water treatment plants
Abstract
The aerobic biotransformation of 6:2 FTS salt [F(CF2)6CH2CH2SO3- K+] was determined in closed bottles for 90d in diluted activated sludge from three waste water treatment plants (WWTPs) to compare its biotransformation potential with that of 6:2 FTOH [F(CF2)6CH2CH2OH]. The 6:2 FTS biotransformation was relatively slow, with 63.7% remaining at day 90 and all observed transformation products together accounting for 6.3% of the initial 6:2 FTS applied. The overall mass balance (6:2 FTS plus observed transformation products) at day 90 in live and sterile treatments averaged 70% and 94%, respectively. At day 90, the stable transformation products observed were 5:3 acid [F(CF2)5CH2CH2COOH, 0.12%], PFBA [F(CF2)3COOH, 0.14%], PFPeA [F(CF2)4COOH, 1.5%], and PFHxA [F(CF2)5COOH 1.1%]. In addition, 5:2 ketone [F(CF2)5C(O)CH3] and 5:2 sFTOH [F(CF2)5CH(OH)CH3] together accounted for 3.4% at day 90. The yield of all the stable transformation products noted above (2.9%) was 19 times lower than that of 6:2 FTOH in aerobic soil. Thus 6:2 FTS is not likely to be a major source of PFCAs and polyfluorinated acids in WWTPs. 6:2 FTOH, 6:2 FTA [F(CF2)6CH2COOH], and PFHpA [F(CF2)6COOH] were not observed during the 90-d incubation. 6:2 FTS primary biotransformation bypassed 6:2 FTOH to form 6:2 FTUA [F(CF2)5CF=CHCOOH], which was subsequently degraded via pathways similar to 6:2 FTOH biotransformation. A substantial fraction of initially dosed 6:2 FTS (24%) may be irreversibly bound to diluted activated sludge catalyzed by microbial enzymes. The relatively slow 6:2 FTS degradation in activated sludge may be due to microbial aerobic de-sulfonation of 6:2 FTS, required for 6:2 FTS further biotransformation, being a rate-limiting step in microorganisms of activated sludge in WWTPs.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Biotransformation of 6:2 FTS has been studied in various mixed microbial culture (e.g., river sediment, activated sludge) (Wang et al., 2011; Ochoa-Herrera, 2016; Zhang et al., 2016) and pure microbial cultures (Key et al., 1998; Van Hamme et al., 2013; Shaw et al., 2019).”
From Formation of perfluorocarboxylic acids from 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FTS) in landfill leachate: Role of microbial communities (2020) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“Desulfonation, considered to be the rate-limiting step in 6:2 FTS biotransformation (Wang et al., 2011), can be catalyzed by monooxygenases.”
From Formation of perfluorocarboxylic acids from 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FTS) in landfill leachate: Role of microbial communities (2020) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“There are few assessments of human and ecological risks associated with 6:2 FTAB and 6:2 FTSA, but these compounds can be further transformed into PFHpA and other short-chain PFCAs in the environment (Harding-Marjanovic et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2011).”
From Biotransformation of perfluoroalkyl acid precursors from various environmental systems: advances and perspectives (2021) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“Aerobic biotransformation of 6:2 FTSA in WWTP activated sludge resulted in same transformation products as 6:2 FTOH, namely 5:2 sFTOH, 5:2 ketone and short chain PFCAs (Wang et al., 2011).”
From A review of microbial degradation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS): Biotransformation routes and enzymes (2023) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“High concentrations of short chain PFAAs among the two campaigns might be due to degradation of perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide substances”
From Release of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from a waste management facility fire to an urban creek (2022) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“it has been suggested that 6:2 FTS and long-chain PFAS (e.g., PFOS) can decompose into short-chain PFAS via biological and abiotic processes e. g., aerobic biotransformation in activated sludge from WWTPs (Wang et al., 2011; Zhang et al., 2021).”
From Occurrence of emerging and persistent organic pollutants in the rivers Cam, Ouse and Thames, UK (2025) · cites this paper as Wang et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“PFAS persist in the environment,5−8”
From Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Groundwater Used as a Source of Drinking Water in the Eastern United States (2022) · cites this paper as [6]
In the citing paper
“The increase of PFAAs has been attributed to the degradation of the PFAS precursor compounds [32, 33], fluorotelomer sulfonoates (FTS) and fluorotelomer alcohols (FOTH), that have been shown to transform to stable PFAAs in WWTP sludge [34, 35].”
From An investigation into per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in nineteen Australian wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) (2019) · cites this paper as [35]
Citations
Cites
Sorption of Perfluorinated Surfactants on Sediments
Higgins, C. P., & Luthy, R. G. (2006) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es061000n · Cited by 1,563
Fluorinated Surfactants and Repellents
(2001) · Textile Research Journal · doi:10.1177/004051750107100823 · Cited by 1,376
EU-wide survey of polar organic persistent pollutants in European river waters
Loos, R., Gawlik, B. M., Giovanni, L., Rimaviciute, E., Serafino, C., & Bidoglio, G. (2008) · Environmental Pollution · doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2008.09.020 · Cited by 1,078
Fluorotelomer alcohol biodegradation yields poly-and perfluorinated acids
Dinglasan, M. J. A., Ye, Y., Edwards, E. A., & Mabury, S. A. (2004) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es0350177 · Cited by 554
Quantitative determination of fluorotelomer sulfonates in groundwater by LC MS/MS
Schultz, M. M., Barofsky, D. F., & Field, J. A. (2004) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es035031j · Cited by 373
Moody, C. A., Hebert, G. N., Strauss, S. H., & Field, J. A. (2003) · Journal of Environmental Monitoring · doi:10.1039/b212497a · Cited by 358
Schultz, M. M., Barofsky, D. F., & Field, J. A. (2003) · Environmental Engineering Science · doi:10.1089/109287503768335959 · Cited by 357
Rhoads, K. R., Janssen, E. M.-L., Luthy, R. G., & Criddle, C. S. (2008) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es702866c · Cited by 325
8-2 Fluorotelomer alcohol aerobic soil biodegradation: Pathways, metabolites, and metabolite yields
Wang, N., Szostek, B., Buck, R. C., Folsom, P. W., Sulecki, L. M., & Gannon, J. T. (2009) · Chemosphere · doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2009.01.033 · Cited by 312
Self-citationBiodegradation of Polyfluoroalkyl Phosphates as a Source of Perfluorinated Acids to the Environment
Lee, H., D’eon, J., & Mabury, S. A. (2010) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es9028183 · Cited by 288
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 37 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Falk, R.A., 1984. In: Ciba-Geigy, A.-G. (Switz.) (Ed.), Perfluoroalkyl Amphoteric Compounds. EP 115251, p. 13.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 301–333 of 333
Evaluating the Relative Importance of Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in AFFF-Impacted Soils
Jones, S. L., Gonda, N., Pritchard, J. C., Richardson, J., Bigler, M. C., Brusseau, M. L., Guo, B., Hatton, J. W., Hire, M., Schaefer, C. E., et al. (2026) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/acs.est.5c17749 · Cited by 1
SUZUKI, Y., Tanaka, S., KITAO, R., YUKIOKA, S., Nakada, N., Fujii, S., & Saito, N. (2016) · Journal of Japan Society of Civil Engineers Ser G (Environmental Research) · doi:10.2208/jscejer.72.iii_45 · Cited by 1
STRAIN PSEUDOMONAS SP. DD4 FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF HALOGEN-CONTAINING SURFACTANTS AND HERBICIDES
Шарипов, Д. А., & Павлович, Ч. С. (2021) · ÈKOBIOTEH · doi:10.31163/2618-964x-2021-4-1-60-67 · Cited by 1
Azzolini, D. C. (2007) · Digital Collections of Colorado (Colorado State University)
Definitions, Uses, and Evolution of PFCs
Cheremisinoff, N. P. (2016) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119363828.ch2
Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in water and wastewater
Chowdhury, S. D., Tyagi, R. D., Pilli, S., Tyagi, V. K., Pandey, A., & Bhunia, P. (2022) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-99906-9.00003-6
Mezzanotte, V., & Sforza, E. B. (2024) · Environmental and Climate Technologies · doi:10.2478/rtuect-2024-0045
Guo, Z., Mekureyaw, M. F., Junker, A. L., Bai, L., Petersen, A. E., & Wei, Z. (2025) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.5246404
Biodegradation and Transformation of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Wastewater
Liu, Q. (2026) · Springer water · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-12693-1_5
Invisible inputs, lasting outputs: Implications of PFAS conversion in California wastewater
Choedon, S., Capozzi, S. L., Hello, M. A., Francisco, K. L., & Rodenburg, L. A. (2026) · Journal of Hazardous Materials Organics · doi:10.1016/j.hazmo.2026.100015
Transfert des composés perfluorés des sédiments aux invertébrés benthiques
Bertin, D. (2014) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/bae99f88zb39dz4c43zb35bzb432356e447b
Arab, M., Navarro, D. A., Smernik, R. J., & Kabiri, S. (2026) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.6629272
Arku, L. D., Liu, J., & Charbonnet, J. A. (2026) · Environmental Science Processes & Impacts · doi:10.1039/d6em00042h
Self-citationLaFond, J. A., Rezes, R. T., Hatzinger, P. B., Shojaei, M., Guelfo, J. L., & Jackson, W. A. (2026) · Journal of Hazardous Materials · doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.142566
Vivekanandan, K., Kandasamy, S., Sigamani, S., Gopal, K., & Kaliyannan, G. (2026) · Process Safety and Environmental Protection · doi:10.1016/j.psep.2026.109104
Baseline occurrence of Short-Chain PFAS in environmental matrices of Coastal Karnataka, India
Devendra, R., & Devatha, C. P. (2026) · H2Open Journal · doi:10.1016/j.htopen.2026.100051
Xiaodong, X., Gao, K., Lan, M., Hong, L., Zhang, H., Wang, M., & Jia, R. (2026) · Water Environment Research · doi:10.1002/wer.70506
Soil enzyme dynamics under PFAS contamination in arid and Mediterranean soils
Sanchez-Hernandez, J. C., Pacheco, N. I. N., Cares, X. A., Semerád, J., Cajthaml, T., & Megharaj, M. (2026) · npj Emerging Contaminants · doi:10.1038/s44454-026-00050-4
Choi, S., Park, J., & Zoh, K.-D. (2026) · Environmental Pollution · doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2026.128916
Ling, Z., Liu, X., Xing, X., Hua, Z., Xiang, Z., Liu, Z., & Yu, L. H. (2026) · Environmental Pollution · doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2026.129075
Transformation of 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonic acid in laccase-mediator systems
Munir, U., Wang, Y., Xi, Z., Ji, Y., Habteselassie, M. Y., Squartini, A., & Huang, Q. (2026) · Frontiers in Environmental Engineering · doi:10.3389/fenve.2026.1948940
Arab, M., Navarro, D. A., Smernik, R. J., & Kabiri, S. (2026) · Journal of Hazardous Materials · doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.143685
Su, B., Chen, H., Washington, J., & Li, M. (2026) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/acs.est.6c04089
Fate and accumulation of legacy and emerging PFAS in periphytic biofilms in riverine mesocosms
Viemont-Lefeuvre, I., Bayle, S., Bertrand, M., Sauvêtre, A., & Lestremau, F. (2026) · Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety · doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2026.120850
Lee, M., Park, J.-H., 김소정, Choe, S., & Yoon, C. (2026) · Environmental Pollution · doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2026.129284
Zhang, X., Yan, N., Zhang, F., Ji, T., Hu, H., Ma, Y., Fu, J., & Brusseau, M. L. (2026) · Journal of Contaminant Hydrology · doi:10.1016/j.jconhyd.2026.105132
dos Santos, E. O., Costa, C. C., & Gonzáles, P. L. S. (2026) · Results in Engineering · doi:10.1016/j.rineng.2026.113614
Konneh, U. M. M., Zhan, J., Liao, Y., Pan, Z., Zheng, F., Zhang, X., & Han, G. (2026) · Journal of environmental chemical engineering · doi:10.1016/j.jece.2026.125601
Amigh, P., Tajdini, B., Pritchard, J. C., Bellona, C. L., Strathmann, T. J., Higgins, C. P., & Cath, T. Y. (2026) · ACS ES&T Water · doi:10.1021/acsestwater.6c01012
Song, J., Zhang, P., Zheng, J., & Hui, K. (2026) · Journal of Hazardous Materials · doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.144042
Khan, M. F. (2026) · Frontiers in Systems Biology · doi:10.3389/fsysb.2026.1991575
Metadata
- Authors
- Wang, N., Liu, J., Buck, R. C., Korzeniowski, S. H., Wolstenholme, B. W., Folsom, P. W., & Sulecki, L. M.
- Affiliations
- DuPont (United States) (US)
- Corresponding author
- Wang, Ning
- Venue
- Chemosphere
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2011-02
- Volume
- 82
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 853-858
- ISSN
- 0045-6535 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2115951227
- Cited by
- 333
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 31 · 2025: 26 · 2024: 39 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 33 · 2021: 38 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 22 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 8 · 2013: 19 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 7.26
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Chemosphere (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances research
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Environmental Chemistry and Analysis
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Pollution › Pharmaceutical and Antibiotic Environmental Impacts
- Keywords
- 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate, aerobic biotransformation, activated sludge, wastewater treatment plants, perfluorinated carboxylic acids, perfluoroalkyl acids, degradation intermediates, perfluorobutanoic acid, PFPeA, perfluorohexanoic acid, fluorotelomer carboxylic acids, mass balance
- MeSH terms
- Aerobiosis, Alkanesulfonates, Bacteria, Aerobic, Biotransformation, Chromatography, Liquid, Sewage, Waste Disposal, Fluid, Water Pollutants, Chemical, Tandem Mass Spectrometry
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
