Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID OH_2025_Niu

Environmental mobility of ultrashort-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances at the water-solid and water-biomass interfaces

Institute: Ohio
USGS Grant Number:
Year Established: 2025 Start Date: 2026-08-01 End Date: 2029-07-31
Total Federal Funds: $308,800 Total Non-Federal Funds: $326,854

Principal Investigators: Xi-Zhi Niu

Project Summary: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called "forever chemicals," are a major concern for regulators, water utilities, and the public. Among them, the ultrashort-chain PFAS are especially troubling because they are more mobile, harder to manage, and widely found in the environment. These properties make them a potential ?Thanos? in the fight against PFAS pollution. Yet very little is known about how these shorter compounds behave once released. This project will be the first to deeply investigate their environmental fate. It will explore how they move through water and soil, how easily they can be taken up by living organisms, and what risks they may pose. The work combines experiments, computer modeling, and advanced molecular-level monitoring to build a solid scientific framework. The results aim to fill critical knowledge gaps and guide future efforts to understand and manage ultrashort-chain PFAS contamination.