NEW PHOSPHORUS BASED FLAME RETARDANTS FOR EE APPLICATIONS:A CASE STUDY ON THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILE IN VIEW OF EUROPEAN LEGISLATION ON CHEMICALS AND END-OF-LIFE (REACH,WEEE,ROHS)

摘要

On the one hand,flame retardants save many lives and property because they prevent accidental fires.On the other hand,there are concerns related to chemical release into the environment and potential health effects.Since halogenated flame retardants have been in the focus of public scrutiny,flame retardants based on other chemistries like phosphorus and nitrogen have been developed and need to prove their environmental benefits.Therefore,the release of flame retardant and degradation products over key stages of the life cycle of flame retarded plastics was investigated:processing by extrusion,use phase,accidental fires,incineration and end-of-life disposal.The new class of phosphinate based flame retardants from Clariant Corporation (Exolit OP) was compared to currently used brominated systems in polyamide (PA) 6,polyamide 6.6,high temperature nylon (HTN) and polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).The authors believe that the methodology presented can be applied to other flame retardants and plastics additives in order to evaluate the environmental profile of these products,especially within the context of upcoming European chemicals regulations (REACH).The status of flame retardants within European end-of-life directives like WEEE and RoHS will also be discussed.