Before diving into treatment technologies, we recommend reading the first article in this series, where we explore what PFAS are and their devastating environmental and health impacts.

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a group of synthetic chemicals widely used in industrial and consumers products. Due do their persistence and resistance to degradation, they accumulate in the environment and pose significant health risks. Addressing PFAS contamination requires a combination of well-established and emerging treatment technologies that focus on treatment, and increasingly, destruction.

Mature PFAS treatment technologies

Several well-established technologies are currently used for PFAS removal, including:

• Granular Activated Carbon (GAC): One of the most studied methods for removing PFAS, commonly used in drinking water treatment. It helps absorb organic compounds, as well as taste, odor, and synthetic chemicals. GAC works well for longer-chain PFAS like PFOA and PFOS but is less effective for shorter-chain ones like PFBS and PFBA, which don’t adsorb as easily.
• Anion Exchange Resins (AER): They are like tiny magnets that attract and hold onto impurities, preventing them from passing through the water system. Negatively charged PFAS are attracted to the positively charged anion resins. This method can treat almost all PFAS chain lengths but is more expensive than GAC.
• Nanofiltration or Reverse Osmosis Membranes: High-pressure membrane filtration systems, i.e. nanofiltration and reverse osmosis, have been highly effective in eliminating over 90% of PFAS, including short-chain compounds.

Emerging PFAS treatment technologies

A few new innovative technologies are being developed to enhance PFAS removal efficiency:

• Selective Absorbents: Companies like Puraffinity are pioneering precision technologies to target PFAS removal. Their Puratech absorbent solution is designed to integrate seamlessly into existing treatment systems and can be tailored to capture specific PFAS compounds.
• Foam Fractionation: Oxyle has developed a multi-stage foam fractionation, catalytic destruction, and machine learning monitoring process. This method has shown to eliminate over 99% of PFAS.

While these technologies improve PFAS capture, they do not destroy the compound. This limitation has driven interest in developing destruction technologies.

Emerging PFAS destruction technologies

Unlike traditional removal methods, destruction technologies aim to completely break down PFAS compounds rather than simply capture them. While holding promise, these technologies are still energy-intensive and costly.

• Supercritical Water Oxidation (SCWO): This oxidation process converts organic contaminants into water, carbon dioxide, and inert mineral residue. 347Water has developed AirSCWO systems, which have been proven effective in destroying PFAS-laden ion exchange resins.
• Electrochemical Oxidation: This technique is an electrochemical reaction that degrades PFAS compounds on a large scale while producing little to no waste, making it a potential solution for large-scale PFAS degradation.

Additionnally, researchers are working on next-generation PFAS destruction technologies such as low-temperature mineralization, plasma technology, and sonolysis.

Destruction technologies require high PFAS concentrations to be effective and tend to be energy-intensive, making them less suitable for diluted waste streams. Furthermore, these technologies are quite immature, requiring validation before large-scale deployment. To address these challenges, technology providers have been exploring hybrid solutions that combine both removal and destruction methods to provide a holistic solution. For instance, Gradiant has developed a technology that enables on-site PFAS removal and destruction, eliminating the need for waste handling, landfilling, or incineration.

3 startups to draw inspiration from

Oxyle

A Swiss start-up that developed a technology which is claimed to have over 99% removal of PFAS with lower energy use compared to traditional methods. The three-stage process involves foam fractionation, catalytic destruction, and machine learning monitoring.

Gradiant

A U.S.-based water and wastewater treatment solutions provider, Gradiant has developed ForeverGone, a technology that is capable of removing and destroying PFAS on site, without the need for waste handling, landfilling, or incineration. It is different from conventional solutions such as granular activated carbon (GAC) and ion exchange

Puraffinity

A UK-based start-up which focused on developing precision technologies for the removal of PFAS from water. Puraffinity has developed an absorbent solution called Puratech, which integrates perfectly into existing water treatment systems and can be adapted to target specific PFAS compounds.

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Context 

With the growing influence of internal investment funds within large corporations, we have developed a barometer to assess the state of Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) in France.​

Missions

In this context, we :

• Developed a structured questionnaire
• Conducted an exhaustive mapping of French investment funds (around 40 funds identified)
• Leveraged our network to facilitate connections
• Implemented a multichannel approach (email, LinkedIn, phone) to reach contacts outside our network
• Administered the questionnaire to 25 funds, ensuring market representativity
• Processed and coded data, converting qualitative responses into quantitative indicators
• Performed in-depth analysis and synthesized results to identify key trends
• Designed the barometer with the support of our in-house design teams​

Key figures

Context 

GTT launched GTT Strategic Ventures, its corporate venture capital fund, in 2023. Through three foundational workshops, we helped GTT establish the strategic direction of the fund, clarify its investment thesis and build the tools for efficiency decision-making. ​

In 2024, we supported GTT to onboard its newly appointed board members. ​

Missions

In this context, we supported our client to:

• A foundational workshop to fully grasp the fundamental responsibilities of both a board member and board observer​
• A case study workshop on the delicate balance between maximizing partnership benefits and maintaining the integrity and independence of the board​
• A second case study on the typical annual cycle of a board, focusing on the crucial role of efficient reporting mechanisms​

Key figures

Context 

Aster Fab is part of a European consortium supporting innovation through the EIC ACCESS+ program. This initiative is designed to help European startups accelerate their growth by providing financial support and access to specialized services.

Who can apply?

• EIC Awardees (Pathfinder, Transition, Accelerator)
• Seal of Excellence holders
• Spin-offs from EIC Awardees

Financial support

• Research package – up to 60,000€
  • Access to infrastructure and R&D support
  • Prototyping and Proof of Concept
• Business acceleration – up to 30,000€
  • Acceleration, Incubation and Venture building
  •  Business Planning
  • Internationalisation
• Skills improvement – up to 10,000€
  • Coaching & Mentoring
  • HR & Talent
• Access funds – up to 30,000€
  • IP & Legal
  • Due Diligence
  • Support fundraising

Key figures

Once unknown, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are now among the most pressing environmental crises. These “forever chemicals” are ubiquitous—from remote ecosystems to human tissues.

France has taken a major step in regulating PFAS, joining a growing list of countries pushing for stricter controls. A new law adopted on the 20th February 2025 aims to curb the use of these persistent pollutants, addressing contamination risks and protecting public health. But what exactly are PFAS, and why are they so concerning?

The Science Behind PFAS

PFAS are a large group of more than 10,000 man-made chemicals that have been used in industries and consumer products since the 1940s. Their most notable feature is that they are extremely persistent, due to their carbon-fluorine bounds, which are the strongest bonds in organic chemistry. This persistence, which maklqe them useful for manufacturing, also causes them to resist natural breakdown, remaining in the environment for hundreds of years.

Adding to the problem, PFAS are highly mobile, detected in rainwater from Tibet to groundwater in industrialized nations. Short-chain and ultrashort-chain PFAS, such as TFA, are particularly troubling due to their ability to infiltrate living cells and bypass most filtration systems.

An investigation by Le Monde and 17 other media identified more than 17,000 contaminated sites across Europe. More than 2,100 of these sites were classified as “hot spots” with pollution levels considered hazardous to human health.

The Devasting Impact of PFAS

Studies have linked exposure to PFAS to severe health conditions, including:

• 57% increased risk of kidney cancer
• 25% reduction in immune function in children
• Elevated cholesterol levels
• Various cancer

Industries Driving PFAS Contamination

The biggest contributors to PFAS pollution are the manufacturers of these chemicals, including large companies such as AGC, Arkema, Daikin, Gore and Syensqo (formerly Solvay). Chermours (formerly DuPont) and 3M are the companies that created these products and contributed to their widespread use. Today, various industries contribute to their further spread:

• Textiles: PFAS are commonly used in raincoats and sportswear to make them waterproof and stain resistant. In 2024, the market for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in this segment is worth $4.4 billion.
• Food packaging & cookware. Some PFAS are used in cookware (i.e. in Teflon pans), food packaging, and in food processing for their non-stick and grease, oil, and water-resistant properties
• Electronics: PFAS play a crucial role in semiconductor manufacturing, particularly in photolithography and equipment components. Their resistance to heat and low surface tension minimize defects, improve chemical compatibility, and increase equipment lifespan. The size of the market for PFAS in electronics stands at $9.1 billion in 2024.
• Cosmetics: PFAS contributes to the performance of waterproof makeup, long-lasting foundations, and anti-aging skincare products.
• Automotive & aerospace: Known for their heat resistance and non-corrosive properties, PFAS are essential in various automotive and aerospace applications.

Perspectives On Regulation

The European Union has implemented stringent regulations to restrict the use of. Key regulations include:

• Persistent organic pollutants (POP) regulation: In line with the Stockholm Convention, this regulation has banned several PFAS substances, including PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) since 2009, PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) since July 2020, and PFHxS (perfluorohexane sulfonic acid) since June 2022.
• Registration, evaluation, authorization & restriction of chemicals (REACH): A REACH proposal aims to ban the manufacture, use, and placing on the market (including imports) of at least 10,000 PFAS substances.
• Drinking water directive: This directive sets a maximum PFAS concentration of less than 0.5 ppt in drinking water effluent to ensure water quality and public safety.

2 Key Figures

Over 10,000

PFAS include more than 10,000 synthetic chemical compounds used in industrial and consumer products.

 €100 Billion

The estimated annual cost of removing even a fraction of short-chain and ultrashort-chain PFAS from the environment and destroying them, surpassing two trillion euros over 20 years.

As businesses increasingly turn to innovative solutions to maintain their competitive edge, ideation plays a crucial role in the development of groundbreaking products and services.

At Aster Fab, we facilitate various types of ideation workshops, leveraging different methodologies depending on your goals. Here are the top 10 ideation techniques, each designed to help you navigate the innovation process effectively.

🎯 Massive idea generation

In situations where you are looking to develop many ideas, these methods help teams to move beyond conventional ways of thinking:

• Brainstorming: Brainstorming is a method teams use to generate ideas to solve well-defined problems. In controlled conditions and a free-thinking environment, teams approach a problem by methods like “How might we” questions.
• Brainwriting: Unlike brainstorming, ideas are written anonymously before being discussed, encouraging participation from all team members.
• Crazy 8’s: Each participant sketches eight ideas in eight minutes, fostering rapid ideation and creativity.
• Reverse brainstorming: Rather than actually solving the problem, groups attempt to come up with the best means of causing your solution to fail. This will reveal things you’ve overlooked and stimulate new ideas.

🔍 Structured exploration

Sometimes, you must examine ideas in a structured way to discover new possibilities or enhance current ideas.

• SCAMPER: Encourages transformation through seven key actions: substituting, combining, adapting, modifying, putting to another use, eliminating, and rearranging. By applying these principles, teams can break out of conventional solutions and explore innovative alternatives

💡 Concept stimulation

To challenge assumptions and stimulate creative thinking, these methods help teams in taking new perspectives:

• Six thinking hats (Edward de Bono): Gives participants six different roles, represented by colored hats. Each role – facts, feelings, risks, optimism, creativity and control- fosters a more disciplined and varied style of problem solving
• Call to a hero: Encourages participants to put themselves in the mind of a celebrity or a hero and imagine how they would tackle the challenge. Placing themselves in someone else’s position, teams come up with creative, outside-the-box solutions that they may not have thought of otherwise.

🖼️ Concept visualization

Concepts can be tricky to grasp. These techniques help teams to visualize their ideas, making them more tangible and actionable:

• Mind mapping: Powerful tool for organizing and connecting ideas in a visual way. Starting from a core idea and expanding, from there, teams can identify how concepts relate to each other and generate new ideas.

👥 User-centered innovation

These practices ensure that ideas align with user needs:

• Rapid prototyping: Refers to the quick creation of prototypes such as sketches, paper models, or digital mockups. This process allows teams to receive early user feedback, identify flaws before heavy investment.
• Design thinking: A human-centered methodology that ensures ideas are desirable, feasible, and viable. Through prioritizing user needs, technical feasibility, and business viability, this approach encourages continuous iteration and refinement throughout the innovation process.

123Fab #104

1 topic, 2 key figures, 3 startups to draw inspiration from

Urban areas face rising temperatures from the combined effects of climate change and the “urban heat island” phenomenon. Concrete and asphalt trap heat, creating hotter cities, escalating energy demands, and endangering vulnerable populations. To mitigate these effects, solutions must address the problem across all scales: city, neighborhood, street, building, and individual levels.

City-Level Strategies

At the city scale, urban planning focuses on creating cooler environments by improving airflow, increasing plant cover, and reducing heat-retaining surfaces:

• Urban Planning and Cool Corridors: Designing open spaces and cool corridors encourages air circulation and reduces heat concentration.
• Increasing Plant Cover: Initiatives like Paris’ Oasis Project transform schoolyards into green spaces, doubling as cool islands and heat refuges.
• Low-Emission Zones (ZFE): Reducing vehicular traffic in cities cuts emissions, indirectly lowering heat retention.
• Urban Water Management: Large-scale rainwater management systems and urban basins help infiltrate water into the soil. This not only prevents flooding but also encourages evaporation, naturally cooling the air during heatwaves.

Neighborhood-Level Strategies

Neighborhood interventions tackle heat through surface treatments, targeted greenery, and smart solutions:

• High-Albedo Materials: Reflective materials reduce heat absorption, like those used in Paris’ “cool islands.” High-albedo materials are surfaces that reflect more sunlight than they absorb, helping to lower surface temperatures.
• Vegetation and Cool Islands: Projects like Urban Canopée integrate vegetation into neighborhoods, while ENGIE Lab Crigen’s Skycooling panels provide shade-based cooling.
• Water Permeation: Soil desilting and localized rainwater infiltration enhance evaporation, which cools the surrounding air naturally. Incorporating small water features like ponds or fountains within neighborhoods can amplify these cooling effects.

Street-Level Strategies

Streets act as heat hotspots, but targeted solutions can reduce their thermal footprint:

• Draining Pavements: Products like Holcim’s concrete, a permeable concrete Hydromedia, allow rainwater to infiltrate the soil, supporting evaporation and natural cooling.
• Green Walls and Photovoltaic Shades: Vegetated walls and shaded walkways lower street temperatures while improving aesthetics and functionality.
• Localized Water Features: Incorporating fountains, small basins, or artificial streams along streets can provide significant localized cooling effects.

Building-Level Strategies

Buildings are central to urban cooling, as they represent a significant proportion of heat storage:

• Green Roofs: Vegetative layers provide natural insulation and cooling, reducing the heat stored by buildings.
• Reflective Paint: Products like Cool Roof reduce heat absorption, keeping interiors cooler.
• Advanced Insulation: Aerogels, a cutting-edge material known for their lightweight properties and high thermal resistance, can significantly reduce heating and cooling costs by providing superior insulation compared to traditional materials.
• Bio-Reactive Facades: Innovations like XTU Architects’ microalgae facades actively regulate temperature by producing oxygen and absorbing heat.
• Rainwater Harvesting: Buildings can integrate systems to collect rainwater, which can then be used for evaporative cooling or irrigation for rooftop and vertical gardens, further reducing heat buildup.

Individual Actions

Individual behaviors also play a vital role in reducing urban heat:

• Soft Mobility: Walking, cycling, and using public transport help reduce vehicular emissions and heat contributions.
• Urban Greening: Individuals can plant greenery at home, install small water features in gardens, or volunteer for local tree-planting initiatives to enhance cooling.
• Water Stewardship: Households can promote cooling by managing rainwater infiltration with permeable garden designs, rain barrels, or bioswales to ensure water is available for natural evaporation processes.

Cooling urban environments requires a multifaceted approach across different scales. From city-wide planning and water management to individual actions like soft mobility, these strategies not only provide immediate relief from heat but also promote the long-term sustainability of urban life. Addressing the urban heat island effect is a pressing necessity as cities prepare for increasingly extreme temperatures in the decades ahead.

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2 Key Figures

4

Temperatures can be 1 to 4°C higher than surrounding rural areas due to the presence of heat-retaining infrastructures like concrete and asphalt.

15%

A 10% increase in tree cover in cities reduces surface temperatures and lower energy consumption needs for cooling by around 15%.

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3 startups to draw inspiration from

CoolRoof

French-based startup specialized in reflective coatings for rooftops and pavements to reduce heat absorption in cities, lowering temperatures and energy consumption.

SolCold

A materials startup from Israel that creates innovative coatings which cool buildings by converting heat into light, reflecting sunlight to reduce urban temperatures.

Green City Solutions

German startup that develops urban green spaces using “CityTree,” a smart, air-purifying moss wall that cools and cleans the air in densely populated areas through IoT integration.

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