Common, cheap ingredients can break down some ‘forever chemicals’
PFAS don’t typically degrade but lye and dimethyl sulfoxide help break some of their atomic bonds
![Seven yellow water-resistant jackets hanging up on a rack next to a pair of yellow rain boots](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/081822_jc_PFAS_feat_REV.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
A kind of “forever chemical” used in such things as water-resistant clothing is difficult to degrade. But a new method using heat, lye and dimethyl sulfoxide appears to bust its strong atomic bonds.
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