Assessment of the Destruction and Removal Efficiency of PFAS in an Incinerator for Hazardous Waste

This study is a first attempt to quantify the destruction and removal efficiency for PFAS, which are regulated by the Stockholm Convention as persistent organic pollutants (POPS), based on a case study in an industrial incinerator for hazardous waste.

by Florian Grote, Andres Van Brecht, Stefan Kühnbach and Boris Ufer

Abstract

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of more than 6,000 persistent and sometimes toxic compounds. To avoid negative effects on the environment and health, PFAS in waste materials are treated by thermal destruction in suitable hazardous waste incinerators. This study is a first attempt to quantify the destruction and removal efficiency for PFAS, which are regulated by the Stockholm Convention as persistent organic pollutants (POPS), based on a case study in an industrial incinerator for hazardous waste.

Indaver plays a central role in the sustainable reduction of PFAS-containing waste from the chemical industry, the life sciences sector, and soil remediation. Only through a systemic approach can a sustainable reduction of PFAS in our living environment be achieved without impacting our daily lives and jeopardizing other sustainability goals such as climate neutrality.

Indaver intends to continue limiting its emissions as much as possible in the future in order to continue playing its central role in reducing PFAS in our society. Essential to this is a stable and legally secure approval framework with limit values based on scientific impact assessments and linked to standardized measurement methods, clear parameter definitions, and defined determination limits. In this presentation, the challenges of validated measurement methods and the measurement uncertainties to be taken into account will be highlighted.

The various aspects of PFAS disposal and the investigations and results obtained in this regard will be presented and discussed from the perspective of the operator of hazardous waste incineration plants.

The impact of combustion processes in Indaver's hazardous waste incinerators on the environment is very limited, with emissions to air <0.10 kg/year and to water <0.05 kg/year. Scientific studies show that the emissions have no impact on the health of local residents. The emissions produced during the incineration processes contribute only a small to negligible amount to the measured presence of PFAS in the environment. These limited residual emissions stand in strong contrast to the more than 600,000 kg of PFAS that Indaver effectively destroys each year.

Article in German language (There is a free trial available)

Get full article here [external link]

published: Abfallwirtschaft und Energie Band 3, TK Verlag, Berlin, Germany, 1|2026
Keywords: Energy Recovery, Pollution Control, Sustainability, Climate, Resource management, Hazardous Waste, Germany

Dr. Florian Grote
Indaver Deutschland GmbH