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Researchers Develop UV-Activated Composite to Break Down Forever Chemicals
Researchers from Wuxi University, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, and Nanjing University have developed a new UV-driven composite to break down per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The material combines a porous graphene aerogel with a light-sensitive metal-organic framework known as MIL-125-NH2(Ti). In controlled laboratory tests, the composite achieved a 90.2% defluorination rate for PFOA over 12 hours under UV light. The setup also degraded shorter-chain PFAS compounds, reaching defluorination rates of 65.3% for PFHxA and 51.8% for PFBA. Details of the light-driven chemistry research were published in Nature Communications.