Competition to destroy ‘forever chemicals’ heats up

Sprawling along the Olentangy River, the immense Battelle Memorial Institute campus in Columbus, Ohio, could easily be mistaken for part of the Ohio State University, which sits across the street.

The heavily secured main entrance to the nonprofit research organization’s headquarters leads to a colorfully lit lobby that looks like a cross between a museum and a fancy hotel. A series of underground hallways connects the nearly 100-year-old buildings.

Inside, a Battelle spin-off named Revive Environmental is preparing to deploy a technology called the PFAS Annihilator. Battelle, in partnership with Viking Global Investors, launched Revive a little over a year ago to commercialize supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) for PFAS destruction. SCWO is a powerful oxidation technique that obliterates organic chemicals. Scientists have been using it for decades to destroy chemical weapons and other difficult-to-treat contaminants.

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