374Water Inc (NASDAQ:SCWO) announced that its commercial-scale AirSCWO (Air Supercritical Water Oxidation) system is capable of consistently destroying per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in biosolids to non-detectable levels.
The company’s technology targets PFAS, a class of synthetic chemicals often referred to as “forever chemicals” due to their persistence in the environment.
Found in a wide range of consumer and industrial products, PFAS compounds are commonly introduced into wastewater systems and accumulate in biosolids, the residual organic material left after sewage treatment.
According to 374Water, the AirSCWO system processes these biosolids and produces treated effluent with PFAS concentrations that fall below detectable limits.
The company said that its system offers a method to completely eliminate PFAS at the source, reducing the need for further treatment or disposal.
“We have been processing biosolids through our AirSCWO units for years, and these results from recent waste destruction efforts show excellent biosolids and PFAS destruction,” 374Water CEO Chris Gannon said in a statement.
“We have successfully treated a wide range of biosolids and PFAS-contaminated sludges using our AirSCWO system, consistently achieving over 99.99% destruction of organic compounds and producing effluents with PFAS levels below the US EPA’s drinking water standards—often reaching non-detectable levels.”
The disposal of PFAS-contaminated biosolids has become a growing challenge for wastewater treatment plants across the US, 374Water highlighted.
Traditional disposal methods such as land application and landfill use are under increased scrutiny due to potential environmental and health risks associated with PFAS leaching into soil, water, and the food chain. As disposal costs and regulatory pressures rise, wastewater utilities are increasingly evaluating advanced treatment solutions.
“We are seeing increased market demand for innovative solutions to destroy PFAS-contaminated waste streams across the municipal, federal and industrial market segments and we are beginning to convert our pipeline to actionable backlog,” Gannon said.
“We continue to demonstrate the effectiveness, scalability, and versatility of our solutions to destroy solid and liquid wastes. With the capability to treat biosolids, we have a differentiated solution to address a broad range of PFAS-impacted waste streams, and we believe our technology can play an important role in addressing this challenging global issue.”