Flame retardants are a diverse group of chemicals that are added to a wide variety of materials and products to prevent or slow the spread of fire. They are found in a range of materials, such as building materials, coatings and finishes, foam materials such as those manufactured with polyurethane (PU), textiles and plastics (polymers).
Types of Flame Retardants:
There are hundreds of different flame retardants, categorized based on chemical structure and properties. Two commonly used flame retardants are brominated flame retardants and organophosphorus flame retardants.
Brominated Flame Retardants:
These are the most abundantly used flame retardants, added to electronics, furniture, building materials and automobiles. These chemicals do not dissolve easily in water; they adhere to particles and build up in river beds and lake sediment.5 They have been found in humans and animals.
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE’s), a subset of brominated flame retardants that replaced polybrominated biphenyls, are man-made industrial chemicals added to consumer products to meet flammability standards set in the 1970s. Some PBDEs can build up in certain fish and mammals when they eat contaminated food or water.
Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) is used widely in electronics, circuit boards, some textiles and paper. It is globally the most highly produced brominated flame retardant, with human exposure to it widespread. It has been found in human tissue and household dust, as well as other places in the environment, including soil, water and fish.
Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) is an additive used in polystyrene foam building materials from which it can leach and attach to indoor dust. Lower levels have been discovered in some food products.
They can broadly be divided into four chemical families:
Inorganic
Halogenated
Organophosphorus
Nitrogen-based
Each has a unique set of flame retardancy properties and mechanisms meaning, although they can be used singularly, they can also be used in combination to create better synergistic effects.
Because the ability to retard the progress of flames is so valuable in consumer products, FRs can be found in a wide variety of products we use every day. In addition to children’s car seats, they can be found in baby carriers, adult car seats, changing table pads, clothing, electronics, infant mattresses, mats, nursing pillows, paints and coatings, plastic shipping pallets, presidential upholstered furniture, sleep positioners, strollers and toys.
Over the years, the use of flame retardants has increasingly been restricted or prohibited due to their toxicity effects and negative impacts to the environment. In the US, a host of jurisdictions across the nation regulate flame retardants in consumer products, including the Federal Government, California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, San Francisco (California), Vermont, Washington and Washington D.C. The restricted or prohibited flame retardants and the scope of regulated products are specific to each of these jurisdictions. Additionally, the states of Maine, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington require disclosure information on some flame retardants in certain children’s products.