Revenue Forecast

Revenue from Drinking Water PFAS Management is projected at $1.24 billion in 2023 with a CAGR of 20.6% during the study period.

The Impact of the Top 3 Strategic Imperatives on the Drinking Water Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances PFAS Management Industry 

Disruptive Technologies

Why: 

The pressing need to address PFAS contamination calls for improvements in detection and treatment technologies. Solutions currently in practice, such as granular activated carbon (GAC) or reverse osmosis (RO), are potentially not effective for all PFAS types and are not affordable on a larger scale, especially for smaller communities.

Frost Perspective: 

Substantial innovations in PFAS testing (beyond classic laboratory testing techniques), such as bioengineering, use biological systems to detect PFAS faster and with more portable and simple solutions. Treatment and destruction technologies, such as electrolysis and thermal methods, provide potentially greater PFAS destruction than more broad-spectrum filtration mechanisms. These treatment methods will move to in-line solutions with no byproduct or with a limited harmful cumulative long-term discharge surmount of existing infrastructure.

Transformative Megatrends

Why: 

PFAS are notoriously difficult to treat given their ubiquitous and persistent nature, broad chemical diversity, and wide range in persistence timescales. A public better informed about the health risks from PFAS, stronger regulatory mandates from state governments, and an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) national mandate (once it establishes treatment levels for water systems that exceed the extremely low standards) will drive technology to effectively meet standards.

Frost Perspective: 

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law addressed PFAS detection, treatment, and drinking water access by investing $10 billion, influencing the industry. The funding will speed up the R&D and implementation of innovative PFAS treatment technologies. In addition, increasing consumer awareness regarding safe drinking water will encourage utilities to drive investments by major municipalities and water utilities in effective PFAS treatment systems.

Innovative Business Models

Why: 

Traditional methods for treating water are often too costly as viable options on a large scale in some areas—especially smaller communities. Another barrier may be the upfront costs of implementing new technologies. The old models must change to meet 2 significant challenges—affordability and accessibility—and ensure clean water is equally available in all communities.

Frost Perspective: 

Affordable and accessible business models are emerging, including subscription-based services, where communities pay a fee for access to PFAS treatment technology. Another channel to promote greater use of new-generation PFAS drinking water treatment systems is public-private partnerships between private companies (that provide drinking water well extraction and treatment services) and government health agencies.

Scope of Analysis

• PFAS are a group of troubling man-made chemicals that see extensive use across various industries. They are found in products from paints and non-stick cookware to stain repellents, pesticides, and fast-food packaging. Unfortunately, these wonder chemicals have a negative side.
• With growing evidence of PFAS contamination in surface water, groundwater, wastewater, soil, and even air, industries are scrambling to find effective management solutions.
• The urgency to address this issue is driving increased efforts in detection and management from municipal utilities and private companies. Investments such as those the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocates will significantly boost the development and implementation of these technologies in the coming years. Focusing on PFAS mitigation is crucial to minimize the environmental and health damage these persistent contaminants cause.

 Segmentation Drinking Water PFAS Management

• Sample Testing
  • PFAS sample collection, testing, and analysis laboratory services
• Site Assessment
  • Consulting services to manage and document the extent and nature of PFAS contamination at a site
• Treatment
  • Concentration Technologies:
    • GAC
    • Ion exchange (IX)
    • Membrane solutions to extract and isolate PFAS
    • Foam fractioning
  • Destruction Technologies:
    • Hydrothermal treatment
    • Electrochemical oxidation (ECOx)
    • Plasma

Growth Drivers

Drinking Water PFAS Management

• Increasing PFAS Detection: Knowing where and how much PFAS exists is essential to adequately develop response plans and scale the appropriate level of required treatment. Municipal and industrial sources will implement more PFAS testing to help map additional contamination hot spots and inform treatment strategies.
• Growing Liability Risks: Heightened attention to the health and environmental impacts of PFAS is causing organizations to take more responsibility for using polluting substances. With such high stakes, PFAS contamination is forcing industries to upgrade leak-prevention and on-site treatment solutions for fear of legal and financial repercussions.
• Evolving Regulatory Landscape: Tightened state-level legislation on PFAS use and handling is following more stringent federal guidelines, such as national and EPA regulations. The EPA lowered health advisory levels for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) by more than 90% in June 2022 to a level of detection expressed as low parts per trillion (ppt) where applicable. Furthermore, some states are enacting bans on PFAS in different products, making the need for solutions to treat these potentially toxic chemicals more urgent.
• Prioritizing Safe Drinking Water Access: Municipalities and water utilities have a fundamental responsibility to ensure safe drinking water for all citizens. Detecting PFAS in drinking water will require more testing and technologies, such as PFAS concentration, treatment, and destruction, to guarantee public health.

Growth Restraints

Drinking Water PFAS Management: Growth Restraints

Companies to Watch

AECOM

• AECOM remains a primary participant in the fight against PFAS contamination in drinking water.
• Its DE-FLUORO™ technology completely combusts PFAS through ECOx, permanently eliminating the need for off-site disposal and reducing the process to 1 step.
• The product shows 95%–100% combustible rates in tests and may allow treatment of various forms of PFAS-contaminated liquids.
• The company provides a full range of services at all stages of the PFAS remediation process and has completed more than 400 projects in 35 states and 16 nations globally.
• AECOM has advanced policies and has provided scientific support for decades. Its in-house laboratory services can help clients pick and design the best remediation strategy from its treatment media.

ALTRA

• With more than 30 years of experience, ALTRA provides one of the most effective treatment solutions for PFAS in drinking water.
• During foam fractionation, bubbles that contain air rise and attract PFAS particles from the water, allowing removal in a concentrated form for disposal.
• The company provides a low-cost method for mobile equipment. Its closed-loop system ensures the safety of workers and environments, while its foam fractionation technology is efficient in cleaning waters with high co-contaminant levels.
• ALTRA engineered its small-scale 24/7 continuous water treatment container unit for mobility and simple operation.
• Its Water-as-a-Service enterprise supplies PFAS remediation solutions. The company has a wide variety of solutions for concentrated waste streams.
• ALTRA has delivered treatment for more than 3 billion gallons of highly contaminated water and is a trusted expert in PFAS remediation. The use of its advanced foam fractionation technology and complementary service model provides the industry with a low-cost method of providing cleaner drinking water.

Waters Corporation

• Waters’s approach simplifies PFAS analysis, allowing company labs to outsource analysis to commercial laboratories, lessening the demand for in-house method development. Water's method includes separation and conducts liquid chromatography, employing ACQUITY™ Premier Columns with MaxPeak™ High Performance Surfaces Technology for superior sensitivity, analyte recovery, and reproducibility. Owing to contamination risks, Waters supplies PFAS Solution Installation Kits with Atlantis Premier BEH C18 AX columns.
• Waters’s Xevo™ TQ Absolute tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer features unparalleled sensitivity and low power consumption for Mass Spectrometry detection. The waters_connect™ for Quantitation is its newest software, which the company designed to streamline data review and large sample set processing.
• Waters stands out as a leader in PFAS analysis solutions. Its comprehensive workflow and its commitment to customer support empower laboratories to perform PFAS analysis at lower detection.

Arcadis

• Arcadis is a global leader in PFAS remediation of water sources. It focuses on an innovative, collaborative approach to provide proven and sustainable PFAS treatments. Arcadis has broad experience in designing and installing large-scale PFAS water treatment systems for groundwater, surface water, and drinking water.
• Arcadis understands that site conditions require engineering solutions on a case-by-case basis. Its portfolio includes:
  • Adsorption: Using adsorptive media, such as GAC or IX resins, to capture PFAS from the water is one of the most common treatment methods. In addition to its reclamation projects, Arcadis is researching how new and improved adsorbent materials can drive treatment costs down while simultaneously extending the overall life of systems.
• Foam fractionation collaboration with Evora: The new generation technology will remove PFAS and co-contaminants from process water. Because of the affinity of PFAS to concentrate in a gas-liquid interface, foam fractionation separates and concentrates GAPs into an air phase, greatly decreasing the wastewater amount that needs additional processing.

Alclarity

• Alclarity is emerging as a trailblazer in PFAS remediation. Its proprietary technology offers a long-term destruction solution.
• The company’s electrochemical process eliminates PFAS instead of simply concentrating them as many traditional methods do. This method converts PFAS pollutants into benign byproducts, such as carbon dioxide and fluoride ions.
• Alclarity caters to large-scale operations, such as treatment facilities, municipalities, and landfills. Its modular system can handle a wide range of water volumes, from low-flow streams to millions of gallons per day. This flexibility ensures a solution for diverse client needs.
• What makes the company successful is its validation approach. The collaboration with Xylem applied this process in a full-scale pilot project, which showed 99% destruction of PFAS in landfill leachate for multiple days, achieving below regulation levels.
• Additional advantages include continuous flow, low energy consumption, and cost-effective technology.

Calgon Carbon

• With more than 15 years of experience, Calgon Carbon is a global leader in innovation for PFAS removal in drinking water treatment and industrial applications. The company provides a whole suite for the specific requirements of municipalities and industrial facilities. Calgon Carbon offers a complete approach to customers to tackle PFAS contamination.
• FILTERSORB® GAC: The company’s flagship product has a strong track record as an effective PFAS removal technology, including:
  • Engineered Systems: Calgon Carbon custom-configures equipment to fit into specific water treatment processes.
  • Local Support: Its team of experts provides on-site support, including installation, exchange services, reactivation of spent carbon, and financing solutions.
  • Easy-to-operate: Working with GAC adsorption technology is simple and requires less attention.
• The company has a history of working in different communities to protect drinking water from PFAS by utilizing its public GAC facilities.

Revenue Forecast