FIU researchers cut PFAS testing from over six hours to 30 minutes by automating sample cleanup
FIU researchers report a PFAS water test that takes 30 minutes instead of more than six hours. It covers 39 of the 40 EPA-listed compounds and arrives as EPA rules require continuous monitoring in public water systems.
The Scientist · Science desk
A share bar showing that the FIU method detects 39 of the 40 EPA-listed PFAS compounds.
- EPA-listed PFAS the method detects, claim 4 39 of 40 compounds 98% computed
EPA-listed PFAS the method detects The rest of the 40
| Share | Part | Whole | Percent | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPA-listed PFAS the method detects | 39 compounds | 40 compounds | 98% (computed) | 4 |
What happened
- The method automates sample cleanup with online solid-phase extraction, then measures trace PFAS with high-precision testing tools.
- Smaller samples and less solvent reduce the risk of human handling errors.
- After testing various sample types in the lab, the team showed the method can analyze small and large PFAS molecules at the same time.
- The team is also developing a simpler total-PFAS method that could process 20 samples in a day with less expensive equipment.
Why it matters
- What it limits constraint Water facilities cannot adopt the method widely until it is certified, and certification requires extensive validation studies across multiple independent laboratories.
- What it limits constraint A laboratory that wants results for all 40 EPA-listed compounds would still need a second method for the one this assay leaves out.
- Who's exposed exposure South Florida's drinking water comes from the shallow Biscayne Aquifer, which is open to runoff from landfills, airports and military air bases, and the FIU account calls rapid testing vital there.
Six hours is 360 minutes, so a 30-minute run is at least a 12-fold cut, and more if the old method took longer than six hours [16]. The Phys.org account of the work does not say which sample type produced the 30-minute figure, whether it applies per sample or per batch, or which steps made up the old six hours.
The paper appeared in the Journal of Chromatography A [15], and its title refers to complex wastewater matrices [11]. The team has also characterized PFAS in tap water across multiple areas of Miami-Dade County [13]. It left one compound out on purpose. Tracking it would have required raising the detection limits for PFOS and the other most regulated chemicals, an unacceptable compromise according to Natalia Quinete, an FIU associate professor [5]. In our view that is the right priority for a compliance method, provided the detection limits hold up when other laboratories repeat the work.
Miami-Dade currently samples its groundwater wells for PFAS every four months, said Maria Guerra de Navarro, a postdoctoral associate at FIU's Institute of Environment [9]. Set against a rule that calls for continuous monitoring [6], a faster assay shortens the wait for each result and leaves the sampling schedule where it is.
On the regulatory route, Guerra de Navarro said: "I believe the EPA should consider incorporating this type of technology into a standard method, given the enormous national demand for PFAS monitoring under new drinking water regulations" [8].
What to watch
- Whether the multi-laboratory validation studies report the same run time and the same 39-compound coverage.
- Results from the team's work on smaller PFAS molecules, which the source says are frequently found in high concentrations in drinking water.
- Whether the EPA moves any online-extraction technique of this kind into a standard method.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence50
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+15
- Incentives
- Not scored
- Confidence55
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
FIU researchers developed a method for detecting PFAS in the water system that cuts testing time from over six hours to 30 minutes.
- [2]
The method automates sample cleanup using online solid-phase extraction paired with high-precision testing tools to measure tiny traces of PFAS.
- [3]
By using smaller samples and less solvent, the method reduces the risk of human handling errors.
- [4]
The method detects 39 of the 40 EPA-listed PFAS.
- [5]
The team intentionally excluded one compound because tracking it would have required raising the detection limits for PFOS and PFAS, the most regulated chemicals, which was an unacceptable compromise.
- [6]
The EPA has recently enacted national regulations requiring continuous monitoring in public water systems.
- [7]
Before the rapid method can be widely used by water facilities it must be certified, which requires extensive validation studies across multiple independent laboratories.
- [8]
"I believe the EPA should consider incorporating this type of technology into a standard method, given the enormous national demand for PFAS monitoring under new drinking water regulations," Guerra de Navarro said.
- [9]
In Miami-Dade County, groundwater wells are monitored for PFAS every four months, according to Guerra de Navarro.
- [10]
South Florida's drinking water is sourced from the shallow Biscayne Aquifer, which is vulnerable to surface runoff from landfills, airports and military air bases, as well as rainwater contamination; the source says rapid testing is vital there.
- [11]
The paper is titled 'Rapid quantification of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in complex wastewater matrices via online SPE-LC-MS/MS method'.
- [12]
The team is now working to detect even smaller PFAS molecules, which are frequently found in high concentrations in drinking water as larger PFAS molecules break down.
- [13]
The research team has already characterized PFAS in the tap water supply across multiple areas of Miami-Dade County.
- [14]
After testing various sample types in the lab, the team showed the method could analyze both small and large PFAS molecules simultaneously.
- [15]
The findings were published in the Journal of Chromatography A.
- [16]
A 30-minute run is at least 12 times faster than a run of over six hours.
- [17]
The team is developing a simpler method to measure total PFAS, not individual compounds, which could process 20 samples in a single day with minimal sample handling and less expensive equipment.
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Sources
1 independent publisher whose own reporting we read for this story.
- phys.orgNew water safety rapid testing method cuts time to results from six hours to 30 minutes
1 article · October 16, 2026
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