Hexavalent chromium - challenges and responses

摘要

A joint presentation by Phil Moran and Andrew Cant of the SEA Hexavalent Chromium Working Party attracted special interest. Over the years there have been numerous attempts to develop a chromium plating process without the need for chromic acid and its associated problems. Commercially viable chloride and sulphate based trivalent processes are now available from several suppliers and are used by a number of companies.Trivalent chromium has a number of benefits over hexavalent chromium, which with the tightening of regulations (COSHH, IPPC, End of Life Vehicles Directive, Waste Electric and Electronic Directive, and other proposed legislation) is increasingly likely to be ever more strictly controlled if not outlawed completely. Against this background, the SEA formed a Hexavalent Chromium Safety Working Party. Following an awareness survey which revealed that many users did not know that alternative less hazardous processes could be substituted, the working party embarked on a programme to promote trivalent chromium drawing on experience in the USA and Europe, and which is backed by work from the EA and HSE.