A research team from the School of Engineering at the University of Toronto in Canada has developed a new non-stick coating material whose performance is equivalent to traditional per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) coatings, but the PFAS content is significantly reduced, making it more environmentally friendly, health and safety. This breakthrough is expected to solve the long-term hidden dangers posed by PFAS in the environment and health fields.
PFAS has excellent water- and oil-repellent properties due to the high inertness of its carbon-fluorine bond, but it is also extremely difficult to degrade and is known as a "forever chemical." Not only do they remain in the environment for a long time, they also accumulate in organisms and are concentrated in the food chain, and are associated with health problems such as cancer and birth defects. Although the use of some long-chain PFAS has been restricted, due to the lack of ideal alternatives, PFAS is still widely used in cookware, waterproof fabrics and food packaging, and even cosmetics.
Using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS, commonly known as silica gel) as the basic material, the research team used an innovative process called "nano-scale fletching technology" to insert the shortest PFAS unit (containing only one carbon atom and three fluorine atoms) at the end of the PDMS molecular chain. This structure is arranged in a manner similar to arrow feathers at the nanoscale, making it possess the biocompatibility of PDMS and the excellent non-stickiness of PFAS. Tests have shown that the coating’s protection level against oils and fats reaches level 6, which is equivalent to commercial PFAS coating performance. However, because the PFAS chain used is extremely short, it will not accumulate in the body.
The research was published in Nature Communications. The research team stated that this technology provides an important direction for the development of lower-risk non-stick materials, and will continue to explore completely PFAS-free alternatives in the future.