Pet Safety / Compounds / 8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate)

Is 8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate) safe for dogs and cats?

Moderate risk for pets

Not veterinary or professional safety advice, and not a substitute for a veterinarian — consult one about your animal. Full disclaimer →

Dogs on military installations show elevated PFAS blood levels including 8:2 FTS transformation products.

What is 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate)?

The IUPAC name is 3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,7,7,8,8,9,9,10,10,10-heptadecafluorodecane-1-sulfonate.

Also known as: 1H,1H,2H,2H-Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (38% aqueous solution), 2-(Perfluorooctyl)ethane-1-sulfonate, 481071-78-7, DTXSID80873416.

IUPAC name
3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,7,7,8,8,9,9,10,10,10-heptadecafluorodecane-1-sulfonate
CAS number
39108-34-4
Molecular formula
C8H5F13O3S
Molecular weight
428.17 g/mol
SMILES
C(CS(=O)(=O)[O-])C(C(C(C(C(C(C(C(F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F)(F)F
PubChem CID
20734545

Risk for dogs

Moderate risk

Dogs on military installations show elevated PFAS blood levels including 8:2 FTS transformation products.

Risk for cats

Moderate risk

Limited exposure data for cats.

Regulatory consensus

2 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified 8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate). The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
EPA—UCMR5 monitoring listmonitored
DoD—PFAS cleanup standardremediation target — Key analyte in DoD PFAS site investigations

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where pets encounter 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate)

  • Firefighting Foam — AFFF concentrates, Fire training area runoff, Airport fire suppression systems
    Primary marker for AFFF contamination at military/airport sites
  • Drinking Water — Groundwater near AFFF sites, Municipal water near military bases
    EPA UCMR5 analyte — detected at multiple DoD installations

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to 8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate):

  • Fluorine-free firefighting foams (F3)
    Trade-offs: Functional performance and cost-effectiveness may vary by application.
    Relative cost: Lower (ingredient elimination)
  • Short-chain 6:2 FTS-based foams (less bioaccumulative transformation products)
    Trade-offs: Functional performance and cost-effectiveness may vary by application.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

Is 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate) safe for pets?

Dogs on military installations show elevated PFAS blood levels including 8:2 FTS transformation products.

What products contain 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate)?

8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate) appears in: AFFF concentrates (firefighting foam); Fire training area runoff (firefighting foam); Groundwater near AFFF sites (drinking water); Municipal water near military bases (drinking water).

Why do regulators disagree about 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate)?

8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate) has been classified by 2 agencies including EPA, DoD, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See 8:2 FTS (8:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate) in the pets app

Look up products containing 8:2 fts (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate), compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in pets View raw API data

Sources (1)
  1. — expert_curation

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →