Cited by 29Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances researchAdvanced oxidation water treatmentEnvironmental remediation with nanomaterials

Perfluoroalkyl chain-length-dependent environmental fate and treatment outcomes of PFAS in water

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Lee, Youn-Jun, Moon, Gitae, Cha, Hoyeon, Lee, Jechan, Kwon, Eilhann E.·2026·npj Clean Water

Abstract

This review elucidates physicochemical distinctions between short- and long-chain PFAS, including hydrophobicity, molecular volume, and C–F bond dissociation energy, and discusses their implications for environmental fate. Building on this framework, recent comparative studies examining chain-length-dependent PFAS removal efficiency and the associated mechanisms across non-destructive treatment processes were consolidated. In addition, this review clarifies the treatment-specific PFAS responses and mechanistic pathways involving defluorination and carbon-backbone cleavage during destructive processes.

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  1. Tshangana CS, et al. Technology status to treat PFAS-contaminated water and limiting factors for their effective full-scale application. npj Clean Water 8, 41 (2025).
  2. Smaili H, Ng C. Adsorption as a remediation technology for short-chain per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water -a critical review. Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology 9, 344-362 (2023).
  3. Bharti S. PFAS in water systems: A critical review on contamination Pathways, analytical Methods, and treatment technologies. Water Conservation Science and Engineering 10, 1-24 (2025).
  4. Le S-T, Kibbey TC, Weber KP, Glamore WC, O'Carroll DM. A group-contribution model for predicting the physicochemical behavior of PFAS components for understanding environmental fate. Science of The Total Environment 764, 142882 (2021).
  5. Zhang K, et al. Short-chain PFASs dominance and their environmental transport dynamics in urban water systems: Insights from multimedia transport analysis and human exposure risk. Environ Int 202, 109602 (2025).
  6. Zhang Y, Thomas A, Apul O, Venkatesan AK. Coexisting ions and long-chain per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) inhibit the adsorption of short-chain PFAS by granular activated carbon. J Hazard Mater 460, 132378 (2023).
  7. Duning Li C-SL, Yi Zhang, Rasel Das, Fahmida Akter, Arjun K. Venkatesan, and Benjamin S. Hsiao. Efficient removal of short-chain and long-chain PFAS by cationic nanocellulose. Journal of Materials Chemistry A 11, 9868-9883 (2023).
  8. Kang SB, Wang Z, Zhang W, Kim K-Y, Won SW. Removal of short-and long-chain PFAS from aquatic systems using electrostatic attraction of polyethylenimine-polyvinyl chloride electrospun nanofiber adsorbent. Separation and Purification Technology 326, 124853 (2023).

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Authors
Lee, Y.-J., Moon, G., Cha, H., Lee, J., & Kwon, E. E.
Affiliations
  • Hanyang University (KR)
  • Sungkyunkwan University (KR)
Corresponding author
Kwon, Eilhann E.
Venue
npj Clean Water
Published
2026-03-05
Volume
9
Issue
1
ISSN
2059-7037 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W7133899908
Cited by
29
References
125
Citations by year
2026: 29
FWCI
56.50
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • npj Clean Water (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Ministry of Science and ICT, South Korea (RS-2023-NR077231)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances research
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Water Science and Technology › Advanced oxidation water treatment
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Environmental remediation with nanomaterials
Keywords
perfluorinated compounds, PFAS, chain length, environmental fate, water treatment, PFAS removal, hydrophobicity, molecular volume, defluorination

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