The examples and perspective in this deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject.(September 2022) |
This timeline of events related to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) includes events related to the discovery, development, manufacture, marketing, uses, concerns, litigation, regulation, and legislation, involving the human-made PFASs. The timeline focuses on some perfluorinated compounds, particularly perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) [1] and on the companies that manufactured and marketed them, mainly DuPont and 3M. [2] An example of PFAS is the fluorinated polymer polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), which has been produced and marketed by DuPont under its trademark Teflon. GenX chemicals and perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS) are organofluorine chemicals used as a replacement for PFOA and PFOS. [3]
PFAS compounds and their derivatives are widely used in many products from water resistant textiles to fire-fighting foam. [4] [1] PFAS are commonly found in every American household in products as diverse as non-stick cookware, stain resistant furniture and carpets, wrinkle free and water repellant clothing, cosmetics, lubricants, paint, pizza boxes, popcorn bags and many other everyday products. [5]
"PFOS was measured in the tissues of wildlife, including, fish, birds, and marine mammals. Some of the species studied include bald eagles, polar bears, albatrosses, and various species of seals. Samples were collected from urbanized areas in North America, especially the Great Lakes region and coastal marine areas and rivers, and Europe. Samples were also collected from a number of more remote, less urbanized locations such as the Arctic and the North Pacific Oceans. ... Concentrations of PFOS in animals from relatively more populated and industrialized regions, such as the North American Great Lakes, Baltic Sea, and Mediterranean Sea, were greater than those in animals from remote marine locations. Fish-eating, predatory animals such as mink and bald eagles contained concentrations of PFOS that were greater than the concentrations in their diets."
— John P. Giesy and Kurunthachalam Kannan. 2001.
Compound | Chemical formula | Structural model | 3D image | Other names | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) | C2F4 | Tetrafluoroethene, Perfluoroethylene, Perfluoroethene | Precursor to PTFE (Teflon) | ||
Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) | C8HF15O2 | perfluorooctanoic acid, PFOA, C8, perfluorooctanoate, perfluorocaprylic acid, FC-143, F-n-octanoic acid, PFO | |||
Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) | C9HF17O2 | As ion: perfluorononanoate | Here the health effects of PFNA, one of the ten most common PFAS, has been more widely studied. [81] Some of the "highest levels" of PFNA "ever found anywhere" are present in the Superfund Coakley landfill site in North Hampton, New Hampshire, and Greenland, New Hampshire. [97] | ||
Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) | C8HF17O3S | As ion: perfluorooctanesulfonate | |||
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) | (C2F4)n | Syncolon, Fluon, Poly(tetrafluroethene), Poly(difluoromethylene), Poly(tetrafluoroethylene), Teflon | |||
Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS) | C6HF13O3S | Perfluorohexane-1-sulphonic acid | |||
Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA) | C6HF11O | Perfluoro-1-pentanecarboxylic acid | |||
GenX | C6H4F11NO3 | GenX, FRD-902, Ammonium 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoro-2-(heptafluoropropoxy)propanoate | Replacement for PFOA developed by DuPont. GenX is created by combining two HFPO molecules to form HFPO-DA fluoride which is then converted to HFPO-DA. GenX is the ammonium salt of HFPO-DA. When GenX contacts water it releases HFPO-DA. This ammonium salt is the chemical compound trademarked by Chemours as GenX, though many other compounds related to the GenX process are informally referred to as GenX. [120] | ||
Hexafluoropropylene oxide (HFPO) | C3F6O | 2,2,3-Trifluoro-3-(trifluoromethyl)oxirane | Precursor to GenX | ||
Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid fluoride (HFPO-DA fluoride) | C6F12O2 | 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoro-2-(heptafluoropropoxy)propionyl fluoride | Precursor to GenX | ||
Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA) | C6HF11O3 | FRD-903, 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoro-2-(heptafluoropropoxy)propanoic acid | Chemical used in the GenX process. GenX hydrolyzes in the presence of water to form HFPO-DA. [120] | ||
Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS) | C4HF9O3S |
The Cape Fear River is a 191.08-mile-long blackwater river in east-central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River in the town of Moncure, North Carolina. Its river basin is the largest in the state: 9,149 sq mi.
Perfluorooctanoic acid is a perfluorinated carboxylic acid produced and used worldwide as an industrial surfactant in chemical processes and as a material feedstock. PFOA is considered a surfactant, or fluorosurfactant, due to its chemical structure, which consists of a perfluorinated, n-heptyl "tail group" and a carboxylate "head group". The head group can be described as hydrophilic while the fluorocarbon tail is both hydrophobic and lipophobic.
Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) is a chemical compound having an eight-carbon fluorocarbon chain and a sulfonic acid functional group and thus a perfluorosulfonic acid. It is an anthropogenic (man-made) fluorosurfactant, now regarded as a global pollutant. PFOS was the key ingredient in Scotchgard, a fabric protector made by 3M, and related stain repellents. The acronym "PFOS" refers to the parent sulfonic acid and to various salts of perfluorooctanesulfonate. These are all colorless or white, water-soluble solids. Although of low acute toxicity, PFOS has attracted much attention for its pervasiveness and environmental impact. It was added to Annex B of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in May 2009.
Firefighting foam is a foam used for fire suppression. Its role is to cool the fire and to coat the fuel, preventing its contact with oxygen, thus achieving suppression of the combustion. Firefighting foam was invented by the Russian engineer and chemist Aleksandr Loran in 1902.
3M Company is an American multinational conglomerate operating in the fields of industry, worker safety, healthcare, and consumer goods. The company produces over 60,000 products under several brands, including adhesives, abrasives, laminates, passive fire protection, personal protective equipment, window films, paint protection films, dental and orthodontic products, electrical and electronic connecting and insulating materials, medical products, car-care products, electronic circuits, healthcare software, and optical films. It is based in Maplewood, a suburb of Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Scotchgard is a 3M brand of products, a stain and durable water repellent applied to fabric, furniture, and carpets to protect them from stains. Scotchgard products typically rely on organofluorine chemicals as the main active ingredient along with petroleum distillate solvents.
Perfluorononanoic acid, or PFNA, is a synthetic perfluorinated carboxylic acid and fluorosurfactant that is also an environmental contaminant found in people and wildlife along with PFOS and PFOA.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances are a group of synthetic organofluorine chemical compounds that have multiple fluorine atoms attached to an alkyl chain. The PubChem database lists more than 6 million unique compounds in this group. PFASs started being used in the mid-20th century to make fluoropolymer coatings and products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease, and water. They are used in a variety of products including waterproof clothing, furniture, adhesives, food packaging, heat-resistant non-stick cooking surfaces, and the insulation of electrical wire. They have played a key economic role for companies such as DuPont, 3M, and W. L. Gore & Associates that use them to produce widely known materials such as Teflon or Gore-Tex.
Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS) is a PFAS chemical compound having a four-carbon fluorocarbon chain and a sulfonic acid functional group. It is stable and unreactive because of the strength of carbon–fluorine bonds. It can occur in the form of a colorless liquid or a corrosive solid. Its conjugate base is perfluorobutanesulfonate which functions as the hydrophobe in fluorosurfactants.
A perfluorinated compound (PFC) or perfluoro compound is an organofluorine compound lacking C-H bonds. Many perfluorinated compounds have properties that are quite different from their C-H containing analogues. Common functional groups in PFCs are OH, CO2H, chlorine, O, and SO3H. Electrofluorination is the predominant method for PFC production. Due to their chemical stability, some of these perfluorinated compounds bioaccumulate.
The Devil We Know is a 2018 investigative documentary film by director Stephanie Soechtig regarding allegations of health hazards from perfluorooctanoic acid, a key ingredient used in manufacturing Teflon, and DuPont's potential responsibility. PFAS are commonly found in every household, and in products as diverse as non-stick cookware, stain resistant furniture and carpets, wrinkle free and water repellant clothing, cosmetics, lubricants, paint, pizza boxes, popcorn bags, and many other everyday products.
Water contamination in Lawrence and Morgan Counties, Alabama, revolves around the presence of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) in the water supply. After the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released new health advisories in March 2016, there was concern over health risks of the levels of PFOA and PFOS present. The responses of different government officials, agencies, and companies raise questions as to whether or not there was any environmental injustice involved.
GenX is a Chemours trademark name for a synthetic, short-chain organofluorine chemical compound, the ammonium salt of hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA). It can also be used more informally to refer to the group of related fluorochemicals that are used to produce GenX. DuPont began the commercial development of GenX in 2009 as a replacement for perfluorooctanoic acid.
Michael L. Dourson is an American toxicologist and Director of Science at the nonprofit organization, Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment. He was formerly a senior advisor to the Administrator of EPA, and prior to that, a professor at the Risk Science Center at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Prior to joining the University of Cincinnati, he was founder and president of the nonprofit Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment. Earlier in his career, he was employed by the Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office, among other assignments.
Dark Waters is a 2019 American legal thriller film directed by Todd Haynes and written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan. The story dramatizes Robert Bilott's case against the chemical manufacturing corporation DuPont after they contaminated a town with unregulated chemicals. It stars Mark Ruffalo as Bilott, along with Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, Bill Camp, Victor Garber, Mare Winningham, William Jackson Harper, and Bill Pullman.
Perfluorobutane sulfonamide, also known as FBSA or H-FBSA, is a perfluorinated surfactant. FBSA and its N-alkylated derivatives have been patented by 3M for use in acid etch solutions with low surface tension. According to the inventors, FBSA and its derivatives are expected to have a smaller tendency to accumulate in living organisms than their perfluorooctanyl analogs such as PFOS. Nevertheless, a 2015 study found FBSA in 32 out of 33 samples of Canadian fish.
Robert Bilott is an American environmental attorney from Cincinnati, Ohio. Bilott is known for the lawsuits against DuPont on behalf of plaintiffs injured by waste dumped in rural communities in West Virginia. Bilott has spent more than twenty years litigating hazardous dumping of the chemicals perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS).
Despite the best efforts of the government, health, and environmental agencies, improper use of hazardous chemicals is pervasive in commercial products, and can yield devastating effects, from people developing brittle bones and severe congenital defects, to strips of wildlife laying dead by poisoned rivers.
Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS) is a synthetic chemical compound. It is one of many compounds collectively known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). It is an anionic fluorosurfactant and a persistent organic pollutant with bioaccumulative properties. Although the use of products containing PFHxS and other PFASs have been banned or are being phased out in many jurisdictions, it remains ubiquitous in many environments and within the general population, and is one of the most commonly detected PFASs.
From the 1950s through the early 2000s, 3M disposed of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances produced during the manufacturing process of various industrial products in four dumping sites in Minnesota. These chemicals have contaminated the groundwater of over 170,000 residents of the Twin Cities East Metro Area, culminating in an $850 million settlement with the State of Minnesota in 2018.
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