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  • Review Article
  • Published:

PFAS thermal treatment approaches and enhancement

Nature Reviews Clean Technology volume 2, pages 38–53 (2026)Cite this article

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Abstract

Thermal technologies, including incineration, pyrolysis and thermal desorption, are full-scale options for removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from contaminated media. However, these thermal treatments generate products of incomplete destruction (PIDs), and complete PFAS mineralization is rarely achieved below 950 °C. In this Review, we examine the thermal degradation and mineralization pathways of PFAS and the PID-formation mechanisms, and highlight innovative strategies to enhance PFAS mineralization at reduced temperatures. PFAS-removal efficiencies are excellent (over 90%) across thermal technologies provided that high temperatures (above 700 °C) are used; however, mineralization efficiencies are generally less than 40% at temperatures below 700 °C and accompanied by the formation of PIDs, including perfluorocarbon greenhouse gases. Thermal phase transitions of PFAS (solid or sorbed to molten to vapour states) typically precede PFAS decomposition. Vapour containment is therefore essential to minimize fugitive emissions. The use of additives (activated carbon, alkali metals, alkaline-earth metals and platinum-group metals) can substantially minimize PID formation and improve mineralization (to more than 95%) at moderate temperatures (200–500 °C). However, additive-enhanced approaches are at varying stages of readiness, and further validation and process optimization are needed prior to large-scale implementation.

Key points

  • The thermal degradation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is linked to their phase transitions, which determine whether degradation occurs in the condensed or vapour phase. Understanding these phase-dependent PFAS degradation processes and correspondingly incorporating melting, volatilization and gas-phase reactions into reactor design will be necessary to mitigate fugitive PFAS emissions.

  • The efficiency of conventional thermal technologies for PFAS degradation varies with temperature, oxygen availability and the material being treated. The major drawbacks of these systems include incomplete PFAS mineralization, the formation of products of incomplete destruction (PIDs) and fugitive PFAS emissions.

  • PIDs, which include fluorinated greenhouse gases, result from chain-scission and radical-mediated pathways. The apparent PFAS degradation estimated by the mass loss often overestimates the true extent of mineralization, because PFAS can transform into PIDs instead of into final inorganic products.

  • Granular activated carbon increases the mineralization of perfluorooctanoic acid and its homologues by as much as tenfold at 400 °C or less by concentrating PFAS vapours on its surface, facilitating C–F bond cleavage, and suppressing PID formation. However, its performance is moderate for high-boiling-point PFAS (such as perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) and needs to be further improved.

  • The addition of alkali and alkaline-earth metal additives converts fluorine radicals and hydrogen fluoride (fluorane, HF) into stable inorganic calcium fluoride (CaF2), resulting in PFAS mineralization of more than 95% at 500 °C while quenching HF and volatile PID emissions.

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Fig. 1: PFAS thermal phase transitions, degradation and thermal treatment technologies.
Fig. 2: Thermal reactors and treatment approaches.
Fig. 3: Degradation and mineralization efficiencies of PFAS across thermal treatment methods.
Fig. 4: Products of incomplete destruction.
Fig. 5: Thermal degradation mechanism.

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Data availability

All data generated and/or analysed during this study are included in this article and its Supplementary Information.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the University of Missouri’s MizzouForward programme, the US Department of Defense Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (ER21-1019, ER21-1234, ER22-4014 and ER24-4073), the Environmental Research and Education Foundation, and the US National Science Foundation (CBET 2320966).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA

    Alireza Arhami Dolatabad, Jiamin Mai, Xuejia Zhang & Feng Xiao

  2. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Environment, Waite Campus, Urrbrae, South Australia, Australia

    Jens Blotevogel

  3. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA

    Mohamed Ateia

  4. AECOM Technical Services, Austin, TX, USA

    Mohamed Ateia

  5. Global Centre for Environmental Remediation (GCER), University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia

    Ravi Naidu

  6. School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

    Kurt Pennell

  7. Department of Environmental Sciences, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, CT, USA

    Joseph J. Pignatello

  8. Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Anthony Rappe

  9. United Arab Emirates University, Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates

    Mohammednoor Altarawneh

  10. Brown and Caldwell, Walnut Creek, CA, USA

    Lloyd Winchell

  11. Missouri Water Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA

    Feng Xiao

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Contributions

A.A.D. contributed to the figure and manuscript preparation. F.X. contributed to the overall conception and design of the Review, figure development and manuscript writing. All authors contributed to reviewing the literature, manuscript preparation, providing critical feedback and revising the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Feng Xiao.

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Competing interests

L.W. is an employee of Brown and Caldwell, an environmental engineering and consulting firm specializing in water and wastewater treatment and environmental remediation; Brown and Caldwell is not an equipment vendor. M.A. is an employee of AECOM Technical Services, which is not an equipment vendor. K.P. reports a relationship with Pennell Environmental LLC for consulting and expert advice, which is not an equipment vendor. The other authors declare no competing interests.

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Arhami Dolatabad, A., Blotevogel, J., Ateia, M. et al. PFAS thermal treatment approaches and enhancement. Nat. Rev. Clean Technol. 2, 38–53 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44359-025-00122-5

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