NEWS
“Taxonomy”: defining sustainable activities
Public consultation on EU criteria specifying industries/activities eligible for green investment. Open to 24th September 18h00 CEST (not midnight). The proposal identifies and defines criteria for economic activities / industries considered environmentally sustainable, so eligible for EU Green Deal investment support.
READ MOREChanges to CLP and new hazard classes
EU consultations are open on chemicals labelling (CLP): digital labelling, additional information, new hazard classes. A ‘Roadmap’ consultation, open to 20 September 2021, addressed digital label and information tools and possibly adding new, or removing, information requirements.
READ MOREFirefighters and harmful chemicals
Canada has announced the aim to protect firefighters from toxic substances, including certain flame retardants. Canada’s Federal Ministers for Health and for the Environment together announced an “Action Plan” to protect firefighters from “harmful chemicals released during household fires”, including “Banning harmful flame retardants”, supporting development of safe FRs and alternatives to chemical FRs, monitoring of firefighter exposure, identifying firefighter practices to reduce exposure, improving PPE (personal protective equipment) and information/awareness activities.
READ MOREUS EPA final rule for thirty FRs
The US EPA has published new information requirements for TBBPA, TCEP, TPP and for 30 halogenated flame retardants. The new final rule under TCSA (US Toxic Substances Control Act), three FRs* (TBBPA = brominated, TCEP = chlorinated, TPP = organophosphate ester) are identified as “high priority substances” requiring submission of all published and unpublished studies to EPA.
READ MOREHalogenated FRs on SVHC Candidate List
ECHA has added three brominated substances and MCCPs to the Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern. The three brominated chemicals (BMP*, TBNPA*, DBPA*) are used in polymers resins or compounds, in foams or as intermediates. MCCPs (medium-chain chlorinated paraffins) are used as flame retardants and as plasticisers in plastics, rubbers and sealants.
READ MOREpinfa input to consultation on melamine
FRs are < 5% of total melamine use, mainly as an intermediate for melamine compounds, several of which qualify for Ecolabels. The German Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) stakeholder consultation on melamine, July 2021, aims to identify areas of potential risk (RMO Analysis: Risk Management Options).
READ MOREFRPM2021
pinfa outlined tomorrow’s fire safety challenges at the 18th Fire Retardant Polymeric Materials conference (FRPM), Budapest. FRPM21 took place in Budapest and online, 29 Aug – 1 Sept 2021, with 125 in-person and 30 online participants from 18 countries, and nearly 100 presentations and posters.
READ MORENetherlands: furniture fire danger
Dutch Safety Board calls for furniture fire safety requirements after investigating a home fire in which two people died. A man and his 4-year old son were killed by toxic smoke in an apartment building fire in Arnhem, The Netherlands, on New Year’s Eve 2020, when a sofa in the flat’s entrance hall caught fire and they were trapped in the lift.
READ MOREISO FR families updated
ISO 1043-4 (Plastics) has been updated to specify separate identification of the brominated FR HBCD.
READ MORELi-ion battery fires in waste management
US EPA reports 250 lithium-ion battery fires in waste treatment facilities impacting workers, environment and recycling. Fires relating to batteries in recycling centres and other waste facilities are increasing, but with limited data, so that the 245 identified fires 2013-2020 caused by batteries are probably only part of the real problem.
READ MOREFire safety requirements for bounce houses
ICC clarifies US fire and safety requirements for inflatable amusement devices for the entertainment industry. The modified International Code Council International Fire Code (ICC IFC) requirement, applicable in the USA, clarifies that NFPA 701 Test Method 2 is required for fabrics for inflatable amusement devices, plus additional fire tests if required by local or other regulation.
READ MORENew PIN FR epoxy adhesive for aircraft
Henkel launches non-halogenated flame retardant epoxy meeting aircraft fire, smoke and toxicity requirements. The two-part Loctite epoxy adhesive reinforces and bonds thermoplastic and thermosets and can serve as a matrix resin on fibreglass.
READ MORENew performance for polymer PIN FR
FRX Polymers shows successes with polyphosphonate PIN FR in demanding medical and automotive applications. The company’s polymeric phosphorus PIN FR has received OEM approvals for use in FR PET in medical equipment instrumentation and in PC/PBT blends in automotive interiors.
READ MOREDurable PIN FR fire treatment for timber
Södra’s non-halogen wood treatment protects from ignition up to 260°C without surface treatment. This means the natural grain of different woods, such as cedar, larch or pine, can remain visible in building interiors (C260) and exteriors (C260 Xterior), or can be painted.
READ MOREPIN FRs for smartphone battery enclosure
Realme has selected a SABIC copolymer resin featuring a PIN FR for the C25’s lightweight, thin-wall battery enclosure. The polycarbonate silicone copolymer resin with PIN FR and an anti-drip agent achieves UL 94 V-0 at 0.6 mm, so enabling design of ever thinner devices.
READ MORELow-smoke PIN FR polypropylene
Tosaf’s PIN FR PP compound meets stringent fire performance and smoke criteria for domestic appliances and construction. The PIN FR polypropylene-based compound meets UL 94 V-5A at 1.6 mm, EN13501-1 BS1 do, NFPA 286, ASTM E162, NF P 92 503/507 M1 and LPS 1207.
READ MOREMetal-organic hybrids as PIN FRs
These can improve polymer compatibility of metal salts, provide catalytic FR functions and absorb pyrolysis products. This review summarises FR effects of different types of metal-organic hybrids. In OMIFERs (organically modified inorganic FRs) metal salts are surface modified by organic molecules to improve polymer compatibility.
READ MOREPIN FR battery module housing for EVs
From Lanxess and INFAC, this offers mass-production, mechanical and non-halogenated fire performance. Lanxess is a PIN flame retardant producer, member of pinfa.
READ MOREBiobased N-P FR for epoxy
A piperazine – phytic acid compound showed to be an effective PIN FR in epoxy, passing UL 94 V-0 and reducing smoke. Phytic acid, a natural molecule with high P content which is widely present in plant seeds, was reacted in ethanol with piperazine, which contains nitrogen, and was then dispersed in epoxy resin before curing.
READ MORERoyal fire death
Eighteen fire fighters were mobilised near Saint Etienne France on 9th August to deal with an apartment fire.
READ MOREReview on organophosphate esters (OPEs)
This review is based on nearly 200 publications, covering production/use, environmental occurrence and health / environmental toxicity of over 20 OPEs (mostly non-halogenated, some chlorinated or brominated) used as flame retardants, plasticisers or in other applications.
READ MORENFPA report on fire in the US since 1980
Analysis of 40 years’ data concludes that the key to improving fire safety is implementation of codes and standards. In buildings where fire safety is strictly regulated, such as hospitals, schools and hotels, catastrophic fires are now rare. In apartment buildings, the rate of deaths per fire has fallen, whereas in less regulated 1-2 family homes it has increased.
READ MOREAsahi Kasei
A leading Japanese polymer manufacturers, Asahi Kasei has joined pinfa to take forward safe and sustainable FRs.
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