"Current water treatment processes are ineffective at removing 'forever chemicals' from water. I am working on designing new materials that can capture and destroy these problematic PFAS"

Ross Livingston is a Hydro Nation Scholar and PhD student at the University of Strathclyde in the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry.

There are over 10,000 different perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) which enter the environment in many ways including from runoff and industrial sites, do not degrade, and pass through conventional water-treatment processes untouched. PFAS are associated with serious adverse effects on human health and are pollutants of significant and widespread global concern.

Ross’ PhD research project aims to synthesise a range of physically robust and environmentally benign synthetic organic polymers with photoactive groups which are active under visible light, and high internal surface areas to pre-concentrate and destroy PFAS. These polymers will have high affinity for PFAS and a large area of contact between PFAS and the photoactive sites. The polymers will be characterised to establish the relationship between the opto-electric and polymer properties. Photocatalytic experiments will be carried out in flow to increase the activity of the catalyst and monitor the products of degradation.

The research will develop a scalable and sustainable approach for the capture and destruction of PFAS present in water at low concentrations. It will provide a scalable method for pollutant mitigation which is usable in different scenarios, including standing water and flowing water.

Ross graduated from the University of Strathclyde with a first-class masters MChem in Chemistry in 2024. His masters project focused on the use of photocatalytically active conjugated polymers used to inactivate bacteria as a method for sustainable water disinfection.

Email: ross.livingston.2019@uni.strath.ac.uk