Making Plastics Safer with Green Chemistry

http://www.theatlantic.com/life/archive/2011/03/green-chemistry-discovery-could-lead-to-safer-plastics/72477/


Many household items are either made of or coated with plastic containing polyurethane (such as wood floors). Polyurethane is made with isocyanates, which are fairly toxic chemicals. Isocyanates release of methyl isocyanate gas which has caused many thousands of deaths and many more injuries. Isocyanate gas can cause skin eye and respiratory problems. Once polyurethane is cured it no longer releases the isocyanate gas, therefore eliminating the toxicity of the plastic. However, during the time the plastic is being cured (as a coating forms by drying) people are exposed to this chemical.

Recently many scientists are focusing on finding substitute chemicals to replace isocyanates that are not toxic, and friendly to the environment. Marion Helou, Jean-François Carpentier, and Sophie M. Guillaume of the Université de Rennes are developing a way to synthesize polyurethane without isocyanate or any other toxic metal catalyst. They use a method that creates bonds between carbon and nitrogen atoms, instead of bonds between carbon and oxygen atoms that polyurethane with isocyanates are made from. This new plastic to replace the traditional toxic polyurethane has high performance, does not have any toxic metal catalysts, and is biodegradable! The only drawback is one chemical called DCC used to make this new polyurethane is frequently made with isocyanates. However, there are some chemicals that can be substituted for isocyanates to make DCC. This new substitute is a huge discovery because it both creates a safe substitute for a toxic plastic that is widely used around the world and is biodegradable. 


Posted by Grant Lorimer