My name is Shyleigh Good. I am a senior chemistry major at James Madison University (JMU) in Harrisonburg, VA. This summer I participated in the Freshwater@UW Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP), where I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Christy K. Remucal and her team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on the analysis of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in wet deposition to Lake Superior.
PFAS are a class of fluorinated organic compounds that are ubiquitous in the environment due to the numerous applications of these compounds. Since the 1950s, PFAS have been produced for a range of products, including consumer goods and aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF). The stability and longevity of PFAS in the environment have led to the persistence of these compounds. Some PFAS can bioaccumulate in the food chain and have been linked to adverse health effects. PFAS species are widely found in surface water, such as the Great Lakes which serve as drinking water sources for millions of people and abundant fisheries for recreational and industrial purposes. Being the furthest upstream and having a hydraulic residence time of 173 years, PFAS concentrations in Lake Superior will likely impact downstream rivers and lakes for decades to come. Lake Superior has few potential point sources of PFAS, as it is primarily surrounded by a forested area and relatively small population. Wet deposition samples at three sites by Lake Superior were analyzed for 36 different PFAS species by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The distribution of PFAS classes varied between sites, indicating a regional impact on the concentration of PFAS species in wet deposition. This dataset will compliment previously analyzed tributary samples in order to characterize PFAS contamination in Lake Superior. Two additional experiments were conducted to check the validity of the washing procedure and cartridge loading in the PFAS solid phase extraction (SPE) method. Both experiments tested how changing different parameters (i.e., the washing method or drying time of the Waters® Oasis WAX Cartridge) impacted the selectivity and recovery of PFAS species in the samples after extraction. The analysis of PFAS species in wet deposition near Lake Superior in conjunction with the tributaries and sediment will be shared with the public and help inform policy makers on strategies to mitigate PFAS in Lake Superior.