The 13th Global Conference on Polymer and Composite Materials (PCM 2026)

Abstract: The strong carbon-fluorine (C–F) bonds in per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) endow them with extreme environmental persistence, resulting in their accumulation in soil, water, and living organisms. This scenario calls for innovative, sustainable, effective, and feasible treatment approaches. Adsorption, degradation, and mineralization are the major strategies for PFAS removal from contaminated media. Among these, interfacial interactions, reduction, oxidation, photodegradation, and electrochemical degradation serve as the core principles and pathways underlying the aforementioned strategies. Given that reduction, oxidation, and even advanced oxidation only achieve partial degradation and mineralization of PFAS, these methods are suitable for wastewater treatment but not feasible for drinking water purification. This report focuses on feasible pathways for removing low-concentration PFAS from drinking water, namely the coupling of adsorption and mineralization on activated carbon-based composites. These composites include activated carbon-supported layered double hydroxides (LDHs), activated carbon-supported graphene, and fluorine/nitrogen (F/N) co-doped activated carbon composites. By enhancing interfacial interactions—such as van der Waals forces, electrostatic forces, hydrogen bonding, and F-F interactions—these adsorbents exhibit superior adsorption capacities for both long-chain and short-chain PFAS. Subsequently, most of the adsorbed PFAS can be thermally degraded and mineralized, accompanied by the regeneration of activated carbon-based composites and the catalytic effect of the supported active components. This strategy avoids the addition of chemicals and the generation of secondary oxidative free radicals in the treated water. Furthermore, the activated carbon can be regenerated and reused to reduce the cost and greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, the rational design of activated carbon-based composites is an effective route for the remediation of PFAS-contaminated media.

Biography: Xuejiao Liu, PhD in Engineering, Associate Professor, Master’s Supervisor at University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has presided over and undertaken 10 projects, including the Jing-Jin-Ji Regional Integrated Environmental Improvement-National Science and Technology Major Project, the Special Research Assistant Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Fujian Provincial Institute-Province Science and Technology Cooperation Project, the Fujian Provincial Academy-Province Science and Technology Cooperation Program Project, Science and Technology projects of Fujian Province and Xiamen, and Enterprises. He has published more than 30 papers in total in internationally renowned journals including Journal of Hazardous Materials, Journal of Cleaner Production, Separation and Purification Technology, and Fuel Processing Technology, with over 1,200 total citations, an H-index of 18, and a maximum single-paper citation of more than 200. He has been granted 12 authorized national invention patents and utility model patents. Based on fundamental studies on material structure evolution and regulation, interfacial mass transfer processes and reactions, and competitive effects, he has developed activated carbon-based functional materials and realized their practical applications. He was awarded the Excellent Award of the President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2019), a high-level C-category talent in Xiamen City (2020), the first prize of Xiamen Science and Technology Progress Award (4/8) (2020), and the Third Prize of Fujian Science and Technology Progress Award (5/5) (2022).