With the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China
project (Approval No. 22271268) and other grants, the team led by Kang Yanbiao
from the University of Science and Technology of China, in collaboration with Qu
Jianping from Nanjing University of Technology, has made progress in the
low-temperature defluorination and degradation of perfluorinated and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). The related achievements were published
online in the journal Nature on November 20, 2024, under the title
"Photocatalytic low-temperature photocatalytic defluorination of PFASs". Paper
link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08179-1 .
PFASs have a large number of strong carbon fluorine bonds within their
molecules, resulting in unique thermal stability, chemical stability, and
hydrophobic and oleophobic properties. They are widely used in fields such as
chemical engineering, electronics, medical equipment, textile machinery, and
nuclear industry. However, the inertness of carbon fluorine bonds makes PFASs
difficult to degrade in natural environments or under mild conditions, and PFASs
are therefore referred to as "permanent chemicals". For example,
polytetrafluoroethylene can maintain stability for several years at 260 ℃, and
its pyrolysis usually occurs above 500 ℃, releasing toxic gases. The massive
accumulation of discarded PFASs in nature has caused a series of environmental
and health risks. At present, achieving defluorination of
polytetrafluoroethylene at low temperatures (<100 ℃) often requires the use
of super strong reducing agents based on active species such as alkali metals.
Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore new methods for the defluorination
and degradation of PFASs that are mild, efficient, and easy to implement.
In response to these challenges, the above-mentioned research team utilized
the strategy of surface distortion to promote electron gain and loss, designed
and synthesized a series of molecules containing highly distorted carbazole core
structures, and utilized their super reducibility under specific light to
achieve complete defluorination and mineralization of polytetrafluoroethylene at
lower temperatures (40-60 ℃) for the first time, efficiently converting it into
inorganic fluoride salts and carbon resources. Experiments have shown that the
unique twisted structure of this type of catalyst can effectively promote
electron transfer. In addition, the photocatalytic reduction catalyst has a
broad-spectrum ability to catalyze the cleavage of carbon fluorine and carbon
carbon bonds, and is suitable for the defluorination degradation of various
perfluoroalkyl small molecules and their derivatives.