The PFAS Analyst’s Wish List

Bryan Vining poses a hypothetical question to close out the technical portion of the discussion: if the panel could wave a magic wand and change one thing, aside from eliminating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) altogether, what would it be? David Megson turns the question back on sample submitters themselves, arguing that the most valuable fix wouldn't be a new instrument or technique but better upfront communication. He describes how labs often receive samples with vague instructions to simply "find out what PFAS are in it," when what's really needed is a clear articulation of the underlying question before choosing a method, potentially saving significant time and cost.

Pasquale Avino echoes a similar philosophy from his own analytical practice, explaining that when no established method exists for a given compound or matrix, he leans on similarity to comparable compounds and matrices, testing solvents and extraction steps incrementally against literature and experience until he arrives at a workable approach.

Vining then raises a topic the panel hadn't yet touched on: artificial intelligence. While declining to take a side on AI's broader merits, he argues it's already embedded in scientific workflows and asks whether AI tools could help analysts synthesize information more efficiently, while cautioning that hallucination remains a real risk requiring experienced oversight to catch flawed or misleading outputs. He frames this as a practical, if imperfect, tool rather than a wholesale replacement for expertise.

The exchange underscores a shared theme across the panel: whether the issue is method selection, sample matrix, or emerging technology, the biggest gains in PFAS analysis often come not from a single technical breakthrough, but from clearer communication between the people submitting samples and the scientists interpreting them.analytical work, and that the instrumentation itself, largely liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS), is capable; the real challenge lies in the operating procedures behind it.