Project partners: Stockhom Vatten, Käppalaförbundet, Cornelsen Sweden, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Uppsala Vatten och Avfall, VA Syd, Gryaab, Eskilstuna Strängnäs, Energi och Miljö, Fortifikationsverket, EPOC Enviro.
Grant: SEK 8 690 802
Project duration: 2026-06-01 to 2029-05-31
Contact person: Andriy Malovanyy, Stockholm Vatten
Purpose and objectives
The aim of the project is to further develop and demonstrate a technology chain based on foam fractionation for cost-effective separation, concentration and destruction of PFAS in municipal wastewater treatment plants. The project focuses in particular on long carbon chain PFAS that can be effectively separated with foam. The goal is to develop methods for foam extraction in existing process tanks, to concentrate PFAS in several steps in a commercial foam fractionation plant and to treat the concentrated concentrate so that PFAS is safely destroyed. The technology will be demonstrated on a pilot scale at a municipal wastewater treatment plant and evaluated in terms of removal efficiency, concentration and cost-effectiveness.
Expected impacts and results
The project is expected to result in new technical solutions for integrating foam fractionation into existing wastewater treatment plants as well as knowledge of how the technology can be combined with the concentration and destruction of PFAS. If the project goals are achieved, the technology can enable significantly lower costs for PFAS treatment compared to established methods such as activated carbon. The results contribute to reducing the spread of PFAS from wastewater to recipients and thus to the Sustainable Water for All mission, especially the goal of reducing the spread of hazardous substances in the aquatic environment.
Planned approach and implementation
The project is carried out through experimental trials and demonstration in several steps. First, methods for foam extraction are developed and tested in different parts of the treatment process at a municipal treatment plant. Then the foam extraction is integrated with a commercial SAFF® plant where PFAS in the collected foam is concentrated in several stages of foam fractionation. The concentrated concentrate is then treated by precipitation or electrochemical destruction. The results of the trials are used for system analysis of performance, costs and environmental impact and are compiled in scientific publications and reports.
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