Extending the Monitoring of Perfluoroalkyl Substances in Arctic Air Reveals a High Abundance of Both Short Acids and Neutral Compounds.

ABSTRACT: Interest in per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in the remote atmosphere now extends to perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) and perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids (PFSAs) with short (n_C < 4), medium (3 < n_C < 13), and long (n_C > 12) alkyl chains. A liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method for the combined analysis of PFASs of variable chain length was applied to 204 high volume active air samples collected at Alert, Nunavut (82° 30' N 62° 20' W) between March 2014 and October 2023. Short-chain PFASs (scPFASs) were detected frequently (>75%) and at the highest median concentrations (trifluoroacetic acid (TFA): 20 pg/m³, perfluoropropionic acid (PFPrA): 1.1 pg/m³, perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA): 3.7 pg/m<

SUBMITTER: Kasperkiewicz A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12355948 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature