Safer non-stick breakthrough could end Teflon’s toxic dominance

Researchers at the University of Toronto have developed a new ultra-repellent non-stick coating that offers a safer alternative to traditional PFAS-based materials like Teflon, which are known for their environmental persistence and health risks. Their innovation uses a silicone base (polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS) enhanced through a technique called nanoscale fletching, where short PDMS chains are bonded to a base material and tipped with the shortest possible PFAS molecule—a single carbon atom bonded to three fluorine atoms. This design achieves oil and water repellency comparable to commercial PFAS coatings but significantly reduces toxicity and bioaccumulation concerns associated with long-chain PFAS. The new coating demonstrated high performance, scoring a 6 on a standard repellency scale used by the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists, matching many existing PFAS products. Importantly, the short-chain PFAS used does not bioaccumulate, addressing major regulatory and health issues linked to longer-chain variants. The