ChemSec: nine of ten PFAS producers expanding for AI demand

Nine of the world's ten biggest producers of PFAS, the 'forever chemicals' that never degrade in nature, are planning to expand output at sites across Europe, Asia and North America, according to a survey by the Swedish chemicals watchdog ChemSec reported by the Guardian. Many are framing the investments around the 'AI revolution' and the role PFAS play in semiconductor production and next-generation datacentre cooling.

'These companies' expansion plans show that unless governments and regulators insist on a rapid phaseout, we will face a new tidal wave of forever chemicals,' said Anne-Sofie Bäckar, ChemSec's executive director.

The datacentre angle turns on 'two-phase immersion cooling': servers are immersed in a pool of PFAS with a low boiling point, and as the hardware heats up the fluid boils, drawing heat away as vapour that recondenses on a coil at the top of the tank. Vendors pitch it as more water- and energy-efficient than conventional cooling for GPU-dense AI hardware.

Specific moves named in the reporting include Daikin launching a 'datacentre hub', Arkema building a $60 million refrigerant production unit in Kentucky, and Chemours expanding capacity at its Fayetteville and Parkersburg sites to serve 'advanced datacenters and AI hardware'. Gujarat Fluorochemicals' chief executive Bir Kapoor was cited framing datacentres and semiconductors, alongside batteries, as growth areas. BASF is the outlier, committing to exit PFAS production by 2028, and Archroma is transitioning to PFAS-free alternatives.

PFAS have been linked to cancer, liver and kidney disease and other harms, and now contaminate the blood of roughly 99% of people worldwide. Opponents say the wave of new AI-driven capacity risks undermining nascent moves to restrict PFAS in Europe, the UK and parts of the US.