What Are PFAS And Why Are They in Our Drinking Water?
PFAS are present in our soil, air, water, and bodies and we don’t know how to get rid of the human-made chemicals. But recent work promises a way to break down these compounds that most of us are exposed to every day, and the solution involves plasma.
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Human-made chemicals that were once considered the peak of our ingenuity have come back to haunt us in a big way.
These ‘zombie chemicals’ that never die are called Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. PFAS are a whole family of thousands of different compounds that are all based on the strongest bond in organic chemistry: the bond between carbon and fluorine.
PFAS have been used in tons of everyday products around the world since the 1940s as a barrier substance-these compounds are used as stain repellents, non-stick coating on cookware, and super effective firefighting foam. They’re also used in semiconductors, cellphones, vehicle manufacturing, really-PFAS are truly everywhere.
But the very trait that makes them so useful is also what makes them difficult to break down. So they just linger-in our groundwater, our soil, even our air...and while some of them may not be dangerous, we’re still not sure what their long-term effects are.
But a new project out of the Air Force Civil Engineer Center has developed something called the Enhanced Contact Plasma Reactor. The device uses argon gas to push the PFAS to the surface of a sample of contaminated water. It then uses electrodes on either side of the isolated PFAS to generate plasma, which is basically a big cloud of particles (positive ions and free electrons) that can knock other things apart.
This new plasma technology reduces the concentration of those two most dangerous PFAS to a safe level for drinking-and does it faster and cheaper than some of the other options out there.
Find out more about the Enhanced Contact Plasma Reactor and what this method could mean for the future of breaking down PFAS in this Elements.
#innovation #PFAS #manmade #chemicals #health #science #seeker #elements
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"The report describes health effects associated with exposure, including cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, increased risk of asthma and thyroid disease in humans. Notably, it describes how daily consumption of extremely low doses of the chemicals appeared to have an effect on rats and mice tested in labs - including delayed eye opening in newborns and lower body weight, as well as changes to brain activity and skeletal composition."
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"To truly eliminate the chemicals, treatment needs to split apart the carbon-fluoride bond that is key to the compound's staying power. Different types of PFAS, which now number in the thousands, are comprised of different length carbon-fluoride chains. The primary goal of proposed decontamination methods is to break the chain into smaller pieces to render it inert. A secondary, and more challenging target, is completely removing the fluoride atoms from the compounds -- an achievement called defluorination."
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"These are a very broad class of chemicals - probably 5,000 or more - and it seems like new ones are being produced all the time,"she says.[...]As a result, "we really don't know much about the great majority of these chemicals," says Birnbaum."
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Пікірлер: 244
Hi Seekers! At 1:47, we mistakenly say "PFO" instead of "PFOS" when talking about Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid. We apologize for this error, as always, thanks for watching!
@the_hanged_clown
4 жыл бұрын
so, what do we do about the PFAS in our bodies already? I don't think plasma treatments will be very...... survivable...
@the_hanged_clown
3 жыл бұрын
@David Bull dude... that was 6 months ago... I don't even remember what I was thinking or talking about
@kicksonfuego1677
3 жыл бұрын
@@the_hanged_clown 🤡
*Any chemical* Cancer: I am with you
@tomerwolberg37
4 жыл бұрын
@@YearRoundHibernater I was thinking the same
@ashishkumawat6110
4 жыл бұрын
@@YearRoundHibernater you know the insights man....
@BKScience812
4 жыл бұрын
Especially that dihydrogen monoxide. That stuff is involved in 100% of cancer and at least present in the body during 100% of fatalities. It’s too often to just be coincidence.
@BKScience812
4 жыл бұрын
@@YearRoundHibernater sorry for my silly mood. The joke kinda just popped into my head when I read "harmful chemicals" since most people don't think of water as a chemical. Speaking of testing chemicals, I always thought it funny that they usually test chemicals in mice at 10 or 100 times the dose comparable to humans (sometimes even higher) in order to prove the stuff causes cancer. They did the same thing with saccharin, but it turns out saccharin also doesn't work the same way in humans.
@BKScience812
4 жыл бұрын
@@YearRoundHibernater I actually read scientific papers for a living. They're not written for the lay person at all, so it takes a scientist to check a scientist. I can tell when a study is flawed or if their results seem unconvincing, but faked data is always a problem.
So how do I get PFAS out of my body - stick my fingers in the power outlet?
@chris_perez
4 жыл бұрын
Hahahahaha
@timmypena241
4 жыл бұрын
80% percent
@cosmicrophoneticino
4 жыл бұрын
Well... You can also pee on the toaster.. I dont recommend this technique as we have yet to find willing participants for safety tests
@digital-footprint
4 жыл бұрын
It will get your soul out too 😉
@ToneyCrimson
4 жыл бұрын
Stick a lightbulb up your butt too see if its working.
I like how calm she is just describing the situation
@Naiemaa
4 жыл бұрын
I don’t like how calm she sounds, if the topic is worrying she should normally sound a bit worried, atm she sounds a bit disconnected from the topic
@chloegrobler4275
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube pls go watch the movie darkwaters
@chloegrobler4275
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube the movie is based off the cover up of the company that developed teflon and other products which had these chemicals in them. Not a fantasy
@chloegrobler4275
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube saved me eggs from sticking to my pan yes, saving lives not so sure
@chloegrobler4275
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube saved my eggs from sticking to my pan yes, saving lives not so sure
Why is there a safe level of consumption if your body cannot break this stuff down anyway?
@Angel24Marin
4 жыл бұрын
A safe level is the one with the rate of accumulation slow enough to not reach critical levels in your lifetime.
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
Thats just so the governments can pretend that its safe and protect their corporate buddies from lawsuits. It is in no way safe. Just like that time when the U.S. gov upped the "safe limit" on radiation exposure post Fukushima. Watch the new film Dark Waters.
@shivamagarwal2460
4 жыл бұрын
@@hootsmin yes bro great movie it really shocked me. These corporates are gonna kill us
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
@@shivamagarwal2460 Hehe, they been at it for years, luckily we are surprisingly hardy.
@sebastianelytron8450
4 жыл бұрын
Stupid question, sorry. How is fiber safe if our body cannot break it down??
I feel like there should be a Class Action Lawsuit that can join
Is this a topic to be smiling about when explaining ?
Amazing as always!
I TOLD YOU I DONT LIKE THEM PUTTING CHEMICALS IN OUR WATER
@thehandliesthandle
4 жыл бұрын
THAT TURN THE FREAKING FROGS GAY. For real though there is a hormone distruptor that turns frogs gay called atrozine in our drinking water
She has a great delivery, like I want to hear her keep talking
@Trident_Euclid
4 жыл бұрын
SIMP
@rhodesianwojak2095
4 жыл бұрын
Here have a s.i.m.p. card
@_sawbonz_
4 жыл бұрын
@@Trident_Euclid can a girl be a simp?
@Justin_GFM
4 жыл бұрын
Ibraheem Al hadede You sound like an incel
Interesting. Thanks for the information and keep it up!
I live in a town called Kallinge in Sweden where there was a major leak of PFAS into the drinking water for years. We all have been tested with extremely high concentration of PFAS in our blood. Highest recorded on earth.
Leaded petrol and now pfas Well done DuPont company for accidental contaminations.
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
Nowt accidental about it.
@anusheeltiwari
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube what the hell how non stick pans, anti knocking agents in petrol and other convenience stuff is helping anybody live longer I think you haven't studied science in your later life Filthy hating piece of shit
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
@@anusheeltiwari Looks like a bot (empty profile), they are spreading filth like that so it gets into peoples heads, much like the OK boomer meme. PsyOps are working overtime to steer the collective narrative.
@rhodesianwojak2095
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube stfu redditor
@rhodesianwojak2095
4 жыл бұрын
@madwtube dont care labcoat worshipper
Hi Seekers, thanks for watching! If you liked this video, check out our episode on a fourth state of matter that could scrub viruses from the air: kzread.info/dash/bejne/oXlnltOkpqquk8o.html
@rhodesianwojak2095
4 жыл бұрын
@Pavor but you dont get it bro, we need all these toxic substances because peepeepoopoo convenience
@joesguiltyguitar
4 жыл бұрын
I want to know can they sterilized the blood by ultraviolet light
What happens to silicones that go down the drain, like antifoaming agents in detergent? C-Si bonds don't exist in nature, so I've wondered about their fate.
Great job Maren!
Nice one!
excellent clip
So nice to see you back Maren, got tired of these other seeker presenters
now THIS is _super-cool!!!_
This video is making me consider replacing my nonstick pans 😐
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
You definately should, I threw mine out years ago. Watch the new film Dark Waters.
@ipissed
4 жыл бұрын
When you properly learn how to season a stainless steel pan before cooking it becomes as non-stick as Teflon. Polish with Lvl 2000 sandpaper, heat until barely smoke, add high smoke point oil, pour off oil, cool back down to cook temp, cook as usual. You can throw a slice of cheese on , completely non-stick. Once you get it right you will watch professional chefs like Gordan Ramsey using Teflon and say "what a noob". 👍🍳
@youngchap4941
4 жыл бұрын
bro i literly cooked whith a nonstick pan tonight and it has scratches all over like big holes in it lol
@franklinayala4879
4 жыл бұрын
cast iron is the safest and most long termed studied. worst case scenario you get iron a essential mineral.
Interesting as all seeker videod
Beautiful 😍
It would be good in cleaning collected rain run off after a carbon filter stage.
What a nice soft voice she has
It's nonsensical how nicely she's describing the worst possible thing
amazing
The issues with PFOA are from small studies on nonstick cookware heated to temperatures your oven can't reach, for lengths of time that you would melt the cookware with. It is conceivable that you could consume it if you used metal and scratched PFOA lined cookware until the lining flaked off (against the warnings you ignore, put on every piece of nonstick cookware). In an effort to reduce this issue, try using carbon steel (if you really want to spend) or cast iron to cook on. They are both safe with metal, and make handy weapons when the zombie hordes invade your home seeking your last roll of toilet paper.
@anaibarangan4908
2 жыл бұрын
That's why I got rid of it all. I only use porcelain, stainless steel, cast iron. .
@ztl6711
Жыл бұрын
china china,
This is the plot to the studio ghibli film, Naussica and the Valley of the Wind
What happens to the resulting flourine?
Can you talk about PFAS on metabolism, i see at least in my society a ceratain tendency of bipolar conducts, i think that human metabolism is affected not for good in the last decades, stress, drug abuse, roaming in the streets with cellphones afects too from my point of view.
Stocks?
@periversen8486
4 жыл бұрын
Seems to be the government who's doing the research and production
Reminds me of rainy weather
All I heard was argon gas and I was sold
Yay another baby step toward replicator tech.
@filonin2
4 жыл бұрын
How? This has nothing to do with that.
Seeker please make an video on microplastic....
Anyone else read "Toxic Peas" in the title?
Is teflon a pfas?
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
Yes it is, watch the new film Dark Waters.
I watch her not seeker 😄❤️
@abhayagarwal5097
4 жыл бұрын
Pervert 🤦
Sounds like pfoa with extra steps
@PenitentHollow
4 жыл бұрын
Ooh la la, someone's gonna get laid in college...
What happens to the atoms when the energy levels return to normal, what compound will it form.
@dananorth895
2 жыл бұрын
Death.
A save level for drinking??!?
Diamonds with carbon to carbon bonds : I am the hardest material PFAS with carbon to flourine bonds : I'm about to ruin this man's whole career
If only there were other adjectives, so we didn’t have to use “super” in every sentence. Oh wait.
Missed an opportunity to say that they're trying to make these PFAs a thing of the PFAst
Talk about how syntetic biology can help to clean up the environment, and at the same time the security of this new technology that can speed up results.
People in the future are going to think we were so stupid having plastic chemicals in our foods and water.
Chelation here I come!
So I believe Teflon is a PFAS chemical? So if Teflon is so toxic, why is it still legal to use in products like cookware where it has the potential to be ingested? Is it a question of money? I know these chemicals, like leaded gas decades ago, have made these companies obscenely rich. Are chemical companies just wrangling their way out of responsibility?
We are getting closer to the great filter
In Nordson this company that I'm working we built that plasma machine
Stop your swearing ... PFAS LOL I'm glad maren is still making content... i love you maren even if we aren't to be together, it's ok because nothing happens without a reason and i may be lonely without your love to give me strength but i hope you can be stronger than me ... Peace my little PFAS lol i couldn't help myself lol it sounds like a swear word and a love word all at the same time...
Your voice is awesome. So calm and cute 😍
Great, now all we have to do is to make it reign lightening all over the globe and boil the oceans...
I love Pepperoni or Pineapple on my PFAS...
Know what's fun? Play this again at half speed. Maren sounds like she's had quite a few too many.
@HypeLozerInc
4 жыл бұрын
Lot of time on your hands haha
@craigcorson3036
4 жыл бұрын
@@HypeLozerInc Yep.
So that was the most cheerful, "You're fucked, PFAS cause cancers" I've ever had the pleasure of watching
So, what your saying is that if I ingest enough of these things I'll be immortal and invincible! ...and strain resistant!
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Please.
@psychoactivednb
4 жыл бұрын
Time To Destination Reduce, Reduce, Reduce...modern consumers don’t seem to give AF about the first part.
Given how many subscribers you have. I would typically expect your videos to get almost 10x the number of views they get after a 7 day period. Strange.
In india where is this technology ??🤔🤔🤔🤔please tell me
@SteveVi0lence
4 жыл бұрын
Just look in your dirty ass water
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
On your non-stick cookware, same as every other country.
But, When it comes to the companies that make it and the criminals in government they bribe, we will continue to be sickened for the sake of their greed.
Looks like we only care about ourself, not animal or whoever can't afford this new tech to save us from the other tech we invented that ended up being armful. Humanity at its peak.
If the bond is so strong, is this polymer used in bullet resistant plates? Is it part of Spectra™ rope? Is it used in Kevlar™? I know how good you are about answering comments, so i'm not holding my breath.
C8
As a recent convert to starting my day with a few charcoal capsules, in the main to remove metabolic waste products from my keto diet, I'm at least fairly confident those said PFAS will at worst be reduced somewhat. Same is true of a lot that has inadvertently found its way into the water table and food supply. Very cost effective too, all things considered.
@corbinnelson1323
2 жыл бұрын
You like eat them?
If they're so dangerous, why weren't these issues discovered during animal testing prior to their use by the public? I'm not disagreeing with the science; I'm genuinely curious
@KiranNU47
2 жыл бұрын
MoNeY
lead and radioactive substances are all safe for household goods
How do they know that the "safe level" has been reached when they do not have the baseline safe level established? Testing for PFAS in parts per billion (or more) is not something your local water testing facility or lab can readily do yet and costs can be high from facilities that can. Have products imported from other countries that do not follow guidelines to reduce or eliminate PFAS been subjected to monitoring or restrictions yet? Very sticky subject... pun intended.
Thumbs up for the "foetal" echocardiogram
Ok so we all have this stuff inside us...and we're still here
PFAS sounds like radiation, it's cumulative. It would be life saving to develop this for radionuclide pollution also! Radionuclides are far worse than PFAS. Pharmaceutical pollution is in everything.
I PFAS when I'm at a public urinal without a divider and I hear someone walk into the restroom.
@psychoactivednb
4 жыл бұрын
oedipa maas I have a shy bladder so I don’t PFAS... 🤗
Wasn't coronavirus enough?
@user-bl4oq7fd8d
4 жыл бұрын
PFAS came first. Wasn't PFAS enough?
@OmegaMegalodon
4 жыл бұрын
now, watch out for coronavirus with PFAS!!!
@themeanestkitten
4 жыл бұрын
Everything is trying to kill us every day....until something kill's us
Don't forget about the water repellent chemicals. Imagine having those in your body. You'll drown yourself but can't absorb any water.
I thought that said PEAS
I have fallen in love with you seeker lady. Don't tell my wife!!!
Came here from LastWordTonight
Plasma da PFAS outta muah..
I don't ever drink tap water anyways
@hootsmin
4 жыл бұрын
Got a teflon pan bud? Hint hint.
*ANTIMATTER*
Even if they scale it up our local governments will not utilize it :(
~ 👏👏👍👌 😊
Next step, find a way on how to get rid of it inside our bodies.
@timminh468
4 жыл бұрын
Eat more approved GMO foods
@emancoy
4 жыл бұрын
@@timminh468 🤣
Once again, the public is responsible for paying to deal with a problem created by corporations. The whole planet is a Superfund site at this point.
Anyone here after watching Dark Waters?
@darshanex
4 жыл бұрын
@80% lol what's with the username
*10 Years from now* "EVERYBODY STOP USING THE PLASMA!!! THEY ARE THE REASON DICKS HAVE BEEN GROWING OUT OF OUR FOREHEADS!!!"
Omg your gorgeous
@JMyoutube1
2 жыл бұрын
So many cuck boys here. You're assuming thems gender and being very toxic masculinity towards them. Shame on you.
I stopped drinking water years ago , because I thought it was bad for you . Anyway people are drinking way too much water . What people dont realize is that everything you drink has water in it , so you dont need to be drinking extra water . Since we know know that this is in everything . I hope you get this plasma thing going . GOOD LUCK !!
These rich people short the poor out they life expectancy
in 10,000 years plants will incorporate our plastic into themselves.
The water company haven't no brains putting rubbish chemicals inside of water system
She is cute. For real can I have her number? And thanks for the awesome information. Great show
Chemicals in the water turning the frogs gay
0:10 no NO *NO* GET IT OUT *GET IT OUT GAY GAY* I'M GAY NOW ( ༎ຶ‿༎ຶ)
Now we know what’s making the frogs gay
How do you make a whole video about PFAS and not discuss the political challenges of globally banning their industrial production? Why by being a chemical industry apologist wearing a happy science educational video mask to push back on environmentalists concerns is how.
Cool, still seems largely useless and irrelevant for all intents and purposes for the foreseeable future. Maybe 20-50 years with more automation and hopefully extremely cheap energy it will be relevant to put into practice.
i just watched dark waters its good
i dont buy a new vehicle every year so i can say i dont contribute much there atleast :D