‘Chemicals forever,’ startups emerge to destroy them as chips race

(Bloomberg) – The battle for domination of artificial intelligence rests on microchips. But the semiconductor area that produces them has a dirty secret: it is a major source of chemicals associated with cancer and other health problems.

According to the Semiconductor Industry Association, global chip sales increased to more than 19% of $ 628 billion last year, which estimates double digits in 2025 again. It is immediately adding to the so-called “Forever Chemicals” to reduce the effects of firfighting foam, nonstick pans, ranak pans, raincos, rancoms, rancas, ranak pans, rancoms, municipal water supply. In response to this growing demand, a wave of startups is offering potential solutions that will not be able to cut chemicals from the supply chain, but may destroy them.

Per- and polyphaloralkile substances, or PFA, have been detected from the islands in every corner of the planet from rainwater in the Himalayas and to the whale of almost every human test. Forever is known as chemicals because the properties that make them so useful also maintain them in the environment, scientists have rapidly associated PFA with health issues including obesity, infertility and cancer.

Lee Bell, technical and policy advisor for the International Pollution Elimination Network, said the technical and policy advisor for a global non -profit network, “There is an immediate need to prevent any industrial PFAS pollution and clean the existing contams.” The inflammatory chemicals will not destroy, he said, “So we need to identify new techniques to fulfill this challenge.”

PFAS -dealing companies are Switzerland -based Oxel AG. The company’s modular system can be extended to treat everything from ground water to industrial waste water. It works by creating bubbles with a diameter less than 1 millimeter – small from a rash of salt – in contaminated water with PFA. They help grab bubbles PFAS molecules and are processed in a way that helps to break chemicals in their harmless mineral components such as carbon dioxide and fluorides. According to the company, the procedure does not leave any toxic sub -product.

Technology can remove more PFA than traditional filtration approaches. Oxyl said it could do some PFAS concentrations below 14 ppt per trillion (PPT), which represents more than 99% elimination rate. This low concentration is around the detection range for six compounds, and the startup stressed that it can reduce the PFAS level by expanding the treatment or adjusting the quantity of catalysts used.

Although the US and the European Union are beginning to limit the amount of PFA permissible in drinking water, it can still be released to companies, there are some restrictions on the California -based Center for Public Environmental Overs of Executive Director Lenny Seagel. Sagal, who has been focused on the pollution of the technical field for decades, said that he is unaware of any American Fab plant that faces PFA sanctions that they can release in their waste water.

According to a 2021 study, testing data of a US semiconductor plant was shown in wastewater as 623 PPT of PFA. The agency stated that the new American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) two types of chemical border concentrations 4 PPT – the lowest “possible” level for drinking water guidelines, the agency said. This emphasized that there is no level of risk without the risk of health effects. (Those rules have been challenged in court, and the case is on a break at the request of President Donald Trump’s EPA.)

Traditional water treatment in municipal plants usually involves involving chemicals such as aluminum or ferrous sulfate to help tie dirt and other small particles together. Because solids are more heavier than water that they reside on the bottom and can be separated. The water usually passes through the additional filtration system, before it reaches the last user. But this approach was not designed to catch PFAS.

“If you want to create a real effect that is scalable and inexpensive, then you need to decently treatment. You need to get closer to the source of the problem, ”said the Oxyle Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Fazer Mushtaq. “Treating drinking water is too late, very expensive and very slow.”

Chips Industry “can lead the charge in solving this issue as they have the opportunity to work on their water in a very controlled environment,” Steven Lam said, the head of technology in Gradeant Corp said that the Boston Area-based company introduced a treatment technology last year that it says that PFAS has been removed and many running demonstrations, which say many moving projects, which have been pursued, which have been philanthropist Are included.

The biggest obstacle to adopt new PFAS destruction technology is regulatory uncertainty. In many courts, PFAS boundaries for drinking water and waste water are developing with different standards. It is important that regulators understand the public health benefits of technologies that completely destroy chemicals on them, which cannot, the gradient said in a statement.

Although some industries such as apparel are phased up to PFA and swap in less dangerous options, for the chips industry, chemicals are important. Semi, an industry association for the semiconductor supply chain, said that while infection with PFAS, “a lack of options proven means that advanced semiconductors cannot be manufactured without them.” The group stated that the region has “actively established participation with governments and academics” to research and develop solutions.

Mushtaq stated that Chips Sector is an important future market for Oxyl, and the company is in the discussion of the initial phase with several firms. Currently, however, it does not have active projects in the industry and it focuses on groundwater cleaning and industrial applications in Europe.

“What we want today is not that we want to ban PFAS in the semiconductor industry. This is a pipe dream, it’s not going to happen, ”he said. “What we want is better waste management.”

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