Flexible PVC compounds for indoor construction cut VOC emissions, provide regulatory solutions

 The compounds are based on three innovations from the supplier, Teknor Apex Company:

 These three innovations can be combined into compounds offering reductions in VOC emissions ranging from 37% to 90%. Compounds that contain alternative plasticizers enable manufacturers to address market requirements for elimination of phthalates. Compounds with bio-based plasticizers also provide for a substantial reduction in the overall carbon footprint of PVC.

Most of the new compounds were added to the company's Apex product line. Those compounds with bio-based plasticizers will be offered under the company's recently introduced BioVinyl brand.

The supplier suggests these products for extruded, calendered, coated, and molded applications for institutional and residential indoor building and furnishing products. Example applications include office partitions, furniture trim, window treatments, baseboards, and flooring. Custom formulations of the low-VOC compounds are available.

“Teknor Apex has developed this suite of low-VOC compounds to help manufacturers meet building codes with increasingly stringent standards for indoor air quality and to comply with FloorScore and UL Greenguard certification requirements,” said John Macaluso, industry manager for consumer and industrial products for the Vinyl Division.

Because half of the PVC polymer is derived from seawater and typical plasticizer loadings are 30%, the substitution of bio-based plasticizers for conventional phthalates makes possible a significant reduction in cumulative energy demand (feedstock and production) with BioVinyl compounds in comparison with many non-PVC plastics.

1) Values from Teknor Apex-developed test for measuring all VOCs in excess of 2 ppm. VOCs are collected for 30 minutes using thermal desorption at 120 degrees C, then analyzed by means of gas chromatography and identified with a mass spectrometer. 

2) Special low-emission formulation.