Frank Leibfarth, PhD
UNC Chapel Hill
Biography:
Frank Leibfarth attended the University of South Dakota, where he was a Goldwater Scholar and graduated in 2008 with degrees in Chemistry and Physics. In that same year, he began a Ph.D. program in chemistry at the University of California Santa Barbara under the direction of Professor Craig J. Hawker. In 2013, Frank began his postdoctoral studies at MIT under the direction of Professor Timothy F. Jamison as an NSF Fellow. He began his independent career in 2016 at the University of North Carolina, where he is a distinguished professor in the Chemistry Department. The overarching goal of the Leibfarth Group is to develop synthetic methods that transform readily available starting materials into functional and sustainable thermoplastics that solve contemporary challenges in plastics recycling and water purification. The work of Professor Leibfarth’s group has been recognized as a Blavatnik Laureate in the Chemical Sciences, Beckman Young Investigator, Popular Science Brilliant Ten, Presidential Early Career Award in Science & Engineering, and Sloan Fellow, among others. At UNC, Prof. Leibfarth has been recognized by the Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and as the Winter 2021 commencement speaker.
Abstract:
Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) constitute a large, persistent class of contaminants that are widespread in the environment and present in numerous industrial waste streams. As regulations in the United States and worldwide tighten, the need for effective, scalable PFAS filtration technologies has become urgent. Existing sorbents suffer from low capacity and poor selectivity—especially for short chain PFAS—leading to frequent replacement and high operating costs. We have collaborated with stakeholders in the state of North Carolina to create a center that can rapidly develop, scale, and evaluate new PFAS remediation technologies in municipal water treatment plants. During this work, we developed a regenerable, specialty granular resin that employs novel chemistries designed to capture PFAS efficiently. Bench and pilot scale performance tests reveal clear advantages over leading commercial ion exchange resins (IERs). When used as a single use sorbent, our resin consistently achieved substantially longer bed volume to breakthrough for ultra short chain PFAS (e.g., 40 % longer for PFPrA at pilot scale) and comparable or greater breakthrough volumes for long chain PFAS such as PFOA. Additionally, the higher capacity of our resins remove up to five times more ultra short chain PFAS per mass of resin by the end of the pilot run. Regeneration of our resins enabled treatment of up to five times more bed volumes before long chain PFAS (e.g., PFOA) breakthrough compared with a single use benchmark IER. These results demonstrate that the novel resin can outperform commercial IERs both as a single use and as a regenerable sorbent, with the latter mode delivering the greatest cost and sustainability benefits for end users.
Frank Leibfarth attended the University of South Dakota, where he was a Goldwater Scholar and graduated in 2008 with degrees in Chemistry and Physics. In that same year, he began a Ph.D. program in chemistry at the University of California Santa Barbara under the direction of Professor Craig J. Hawker. In 2013, Frank began his postdoctoral studies at MIT under the direction of Professor Timothy F. Jamison as an NSF Fellow. He began his independent career in 2016 at the University of North Carolina, where he is a distinguished professor in the Chemistry Department. The overarching goal of the Leibfarth Group is to develop synthetic methods that transform readily available starting materials into functional and sustainable thermoplastics that solve contemporary challenges in plastics recycling and water purification. The work of Professor Leibfarth’s group has been recognized as a Blavatnik Laureate in the Chemical Sciences, Beckman Young Investigator, Popular Science Brilliant Ten, Presidential Early Career Award in Science & Engineering, and Sloan Fellow, among others. At UNC, Prof. Leibfarth has been recognized by the Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and as the Winter 2021 commencement speaker.
Abstract:
Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) constitute a large, persistent class of contaminants that are widespread in the environment and present in numerous industrial waste streams. As regulations in the United States and worldwide tighten, the need for effective, scalable PFAS filtration technologies has become urgent. Existing sorbents suffer from low capacity and poor selectivity—especially for short chain PFAS—leading to frequent replacement and high operating costs. We have collaborated with stakeholders in the state of North Carolina to create a center that can rapidly develop, scale, and evaluate new PFAS remediation technologies in municipal water treatment plants. During this work, we developed a regenerable, specialty granular resin that employs novel chemistries designed to capture PFAS efficiently. Bench and pilot scale performance tests reveal clear advantages over leading commercial ion exchange resins (IERs). When used as a single use sorbent, our resin consistently achieved substantially longer bed volume to breakthrough for ultra short chain PFAS (e.g., 40 % longer for PFPrA at pilot scale) and comparable or greater breakthrough volumes for long chain PFAS such as PFOA. Additionally, the higher capacity of our resins remove up to five times more ultra short chain PFAS per mass of resin by the end of the pilot run. Regeneration of our resins enabled treatment of up to five times more bed volumes before long chain PFAS (e.g., PFOA) breakthrough compared with a single use benchmark IER. These results demonstrate that the novel resin can outperform commercial IERs both as a single use and as a regenerable sorbent, with the latter mode delivering the greatest cost and sustainability benefits for end users.
