2026-10-14T19:43:23Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/34022157 2026-09-30T00:24:28Z category_25171 portal_12 item_type_5 month_year_09_2026

Erin Donahue-Boyle: Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire! Siloxanes as Potential Replacements for Forever Chemicals Erin Donahue-Boyle (25136159) Mitchell Nascimento (19270465) Emma Saint-Pastou (25136167) Jack Chen (4088113) Melanie Kah (6247421) Lokesh Padhye (1203327) Erin Leitao (1191267) Macromolecular and materials chemistry not elsewhere classified Sustainable Materials Green Chemistry Surfactants Siloxanes Firefighting Coatings Synthetic Chemistry <p dir="ltr">Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances are used in many applications because they are exceptionally stable, are good emulsifiers, and can create oil-repellent coatings. However, they are very environmentally persistent, bioaccumulative, and prone to widespread transport, and are being regulated worldwide. Siloxanes are another class of compound that are commercially used and whose properties compare favourably with some of those of PFAS. They have already been used as PFAS replacements in applications like water-repellent garment coatings and cosmetics. Beneficially, they are also known to degrade quickly in the environment. This project focuses on the design of new, siloxane-based molecules that mimic the structures of PFAS. Using synthetic chemistry, we have developed a number of compounds whose properties we are testing to understand their viability as PFAS replacements.</p> 2026-09-30T00:24:28Z Image Poster 10.17608/k6.auckland.34022157.v2 https://figshare.com/articles/poster/Out_of_the_Frying_Pan_Into_the_Fire_Siloxanes_as_Potential_Replacements_for_Forever_Chemicals/34022157 CC BY 4.0