Key Facts

VITO and Wageningen Research will investigate PFAS pollution across several industrial areas in Flanders, Belgium. These areas are affected by multiple contamination pathways, including airborne PFAS emissions from industrial facilities. To develop effective remediation strategies, local authorities require a better understanding of how these substances disperse and affect the environment.

VITO will combine an air-quality model with a soil-leaching model to simulate PFAS transport through the atmosphere and into the soil. Wageningen Research will study how PFAS interact with soil systems and how they are taken up by plants. By integrating these modelling approaches and expertise, the project aims to improve insight into PFAS contamination dynamics. The resulting framework will also allow authorities to explore different scenarios and support the development of effective remediation strategies.

Industrial site

PFAS

Soil, air & plants

Process

Adsorption and transport of ionisable substances as PFAS. Atmospheric PFAS input to soil. Plant uptake of PFAS and other ionisable organic pollutants.

Actions and expected results

• Simulating PFAS emissions, atmospheric dispersion, and deposition over a large area using the IFDM model.
• Incorporating simulated PFAS deposition into a soil leaching model to refine boundary conditions and improve accuracy.
• Enhancing soil leaching models by better representing PFAS adsorption, considering their surfactant properties.
• Improving the parameterization of PFAS behavior in plant uptake models.

Challenges

• PFAS consist of over 6000 individual molecules, each with unique properties. A key challenge is identifying the most relevant PFAS for study and determining the necessary parameters for accurate modeling.
• Ensuring accurate model parameterization with a limited amount of available measurement data.
• Identifying and distinguishing PFAS contamination from multiple sources, including fires, diffuse pollution, and leakages.

Partners involved