Puraffinity Secures £1.9m Series A to Tackle PFAS Forever Chemicals in Water

London-based environmental technology company Puraffinity has secured £1.9m in a Series A funding round, achieving a post-money valuation of £31.6m. The investment will support the company in its mission to remove toxic perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as forever chemicals or PFAS, from global water supplies.

Founded in 2015 as a spinout from Imperial College London, Puraffinity combines chemistry and material engineering to develop advanced adsorbent media. Its flagship technology, Puratech, is a customisable plug-in solution designed to fit into existing water treatment systems. The material features molecular structures engineered with a high affinity for target compounds, allowing it to selectively capture emerging contaminants like PFAS.

The company provides these water treatment solutions across a broad spectrum of markets, including residential, commercial, industrial, municipal, and environmental service sectors. Applications range from point-of-use systems and municipal potable water to groundwater remediation, industrial manufacturing, and military bases.

The latest funding round, allotted on 6 March 2026 and filed on 12 March 2026, brings Puraffinity's estimated post-money valuation to £31.6m. The company is backed by a consortium of leading sustainability and deeptech investors, including Octopus Ventures, BGF, Kindred Capital, and Heritage Group Ventures. This £1.9m injection builds upon a larger £16.9m Series A tranche completed in late 2024, providing further capital to scale up manufacturing capabilities and meet growing international demand.

Financially, Puraffinity exhibits the typical profile of an R&D-intensive deeptech hardware company transitioning to full commercialisation. The firm reported a loss of £2.18m in its latest accounts, reflecting heavy investment in product development, laboratory expansion, and manufacturing scale-up. The company has been steadily growing its workforce, with latest accounts showing 25 employees and current professional network data indicating a headcount of 41.

The problem Puraffinity addresses is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of the decade. PFAS are a group of synthetic chemicals used in consumer products since the 1940s, notorious for their persistence in the environment and the human body. They have been linked to multiple severe health issues, including cancer. As global regulatory bodies, including those in the UK, the European Union, and the United States, implement stricter compliance standards for PFAS levels in drinking water, the demand for cost-effective and easily deployable removal technologies has surged. Puraffinity's solution offers a compelling return on investment for customers by reducing life-cycle costs compared to conventional, less targeted water treatment methods.

This funding round highlights the continued resilience of the UK cleantech and climate tech funding landscape in 2026. Despite broader venture capital market fluctuations, investors remain highly motivated to back hardware and deeptech solutions that address urgent ecological and regulatory mandates. The UK government has increasingly prioritised the green economy, with initiatives like the Green Industries Growth Accelerator setting up substantial funds for clean energy and environmental supply chains. Within this ecosystem, water technology has emerged as a critical sub-sector.

By securing this additional Series A capital, Puraffinity is well-positioned to accelerate its commercial rollout and expand its global footprint. The company aims to provide PFAS-safe water to one billion people by 2030, a goal that aligns closely with the broader push by UK venture capital to fund scalable technologies capable of delivering significant societal and environmental impact.