Facts

Scientists agree: not all PFAS compounds are the same

PFAS refers to a class of chemicals known as per- and poly-fluroalkyl substances (PFAS) that share similarities such as structures in which carbon atoms and fluorine atoms are bound.  Scientists agree that not all PFAS are the same, and not all PFAS present risks to human health and the environment.  The OECD states that “the term ‘PFASs’ does not inform whether a compound is harmful or not, but only communicates that the compounds under this term share the same trait for having a fully fluorinated methyl or methylene carbon moiety.” Certain PFAS might be volatile and others involatile, some are water soluble and others are insoluble, some PFAS are inert while some are very reactive, and some bioaccumulate while other PFAS do not.

While U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified more than 10,000 materials that are likely to meet the broadest definition of PFAS, the number of compounds that are currently being manufactured or used in the United States today is closer to 700 PFAS compounds.

Eliminating Production and Use of PFOA and PFOS

As industrial applications of PFAS evolved over the decades, so too have the chemistries used in modern products. To protect public health and the environment, manufacturers ended US and EU production and use of PFOA and PFOS, the legacy PFAS most commonly found in the environment and in human tissue. These two compounds were widely used in commercial and consumer products in the United States beginning in the 1940s and 1950s. Manufacturers phased out the commercial production and use of PFOS in 2002 and PFOA by 2015 due to their persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) properties.  

Levels of detectable PFAS in human blood have sharply declined since the phase out of PFOA and PFOS, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. From 1999-2000 to 2017-2018, PFOS levels found in human blood declined by more than 85% and PFOA levels in blood declined by more than 70%. Nonetheless, as a result of historically high volume uses of PFAS, many contaminated sites still exist around the US.  Remediation of PFAS identified as PBT substances in the environment must be a priority to ensure this trend continues.

Key Attributes & Industry Applications of Fundamental Compounds

Many commercially active PFAS compounds today have established profiles and do not pose the same level of concern to human health or the environment when manufactured and used appropriately. When a new PFAS is produced for use in contemporary manufacturing operations in the U.S. – including fluoropolymers, fluorotelomers, and fluorinated gases – it is must be thoroughly reviewed and authorized prior to use in the US, by the appropriate federal agencies, like the U.S. EPA and FDA.

FLUOROPOLYMERS

Fluoropolymers are typically solid materials with unique performance properties that make them fundamental components in products that must perform under the toughest conditions. In general, fluoropolymers meet the OECD criteria as being polymers of low concern (PLC) to human health and the environment.

    • Not bioavailable or bioaccumulative (i.e., non-toxic) – large molecular size prevents fluoropolymers from entering human cells passively; lacks properties allowing to bind to surface cell receptors¹

    • Non-mobile in the environment - fluoropolymers are not water soluble and do not absorb to soil¹


    ¹ Henry et al., A critical review of the application of polymer of low concern and regulatory criteria to fluoropolymers, 2018

    • Medical – medical devices (ie. surgically implanted stents, MRI machines), pharmaceutical active ingredients, catheters and guidewires, respirator components

    • Electronics – mobile cellular devices, TV’s, computers, semiconductor manufacturing

    • Automotive – electric vehicle batteries, fuel system components, sensors for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and autonomous vehicles

    • Aerospace, Defense, Space – metal plating and manufacturing, sealants, lubricants, coatings, composite aircraft component manufacturing, wiring

  • Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)

    • A unique fluoropolymer that is extremely stable and resistant to degradation unless exposed to extreme temperatures or chemicals harmful to human health

    • Demonstrated medical safety – Peer reviewed scientific studies of patients with implanted PTFE cardiovascular medical devices “demonstrate no chronic toxicity or carcinogenicity and no reproductive, developmental, or endocrine toxicity.”¹

    Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF)

    • A unique fluoropolymer used primarily for its resistance to chemicals, radiation, weathering/UV, and its outstanding flames and smoke properties

    • Used extensively in virtually every Lithium ion battery construction as well as in high purity semiconductor manufacture

    • Thermally, biologically, and chemically stable, negligibly soluble in water, nonmobile, nonbioavailable²

    Polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE)

    • A unique fluoropolymer that provides exception moisture barrier and chemical resistance

    • Medical applications – PCTFE enables modern pharmaceutical packaging by safely delivering and preserving pharmaceuticals; each application undergoes FDA review²

    ¹ Henry et al., A critical review of the application of polymer of low concern and regulatory criteria to fluoropolymers, 2018
    ² Korzeniowski et al., A critical review of the application of polymer of low concern regulatory criteria to fluoropolymers II: Fluoroplastics and fluoroelastomers, 2022

 
 

FLUOROTELOMERS

As liquids, C6 fluorotelomer-based products feature unique wetting and spreading features, as well as unique properties that repel liquids. Many C6 fluorotelomers have undergone extensive regulatory reviews by the EPA prior to commercial introduction.

 
 

FLUORINATED GASES

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) are short chain substances (≤ C5 chains) that do not meet the criteria of being classified as persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic substances (‘PBT’). As some of the most studied compounds in use today, Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) are included under the broadest definitions of PFAS compounds, nevertheless, they do not share the same characteristics as most members of the PFAS compound class.

The U.S. EPA uses a narrower definition of PFAS than the OECD or the REACH restriction proposal call for evidence, to develop a starting list of PFAS, to be used in developing its national PFAS testing strategy. For example, the US EPA is using a working structural definition of PFAS for which reporting would be required. HFOs are not presently among the PFAS currently listed or targeted for any specific Agency action. HFOs are environmentally-preferable fluorinated substances that are a key pathway to help decarbonize our economy, mitigate the effects of ground-level smog formation, avert climate change and phase down potent greenhouse gases.

    • Non-persistent, bioaccumulative or toxic (PBT), non- or mildly-flammable, low global warming potential (GWP)

    • The United Nations, the U.S. EPA and the California Air Resource Board (CARB) have all deemed HFOs to be acceptable and pose no risk to public health

    • Low-global-warming-potential, non-ozone-depleting and energy efficient

    • More than one billion dollars has been invested in HFO technology anticipating the need for lower-GWP solutions to address climate change

    • Personal care and aerosols

    • Medical

    • Construction and insulation

    • Refrigerants

    • Air Conditioning

    • Cleaning solvents

 

SPAN Members are Engaged in Research to Find Non-PFAS Substitutes

The Sustainable PFAS Action Network is committed to responsible, science- and risk-based stewardship practices for the production and use of PFAS containing compounds. We encourage use of the best available contemporary environmental control technologies to minimize release and human exposure to PFAS of concern, including compounds identified as PBT substances. American manufacturers spend billions of dollars each year researching and developing possible alternatives to PFAS compounds. Thanks to this research, progress has been made to eliminate uses of PFAS in some products and migrate to lower-risk compounds in others. Today, no readily available chemical substitutes exist to replace every PFAS containing compound in many everyday consumer products and industrial uses. However, SPAN members are actively encouraging and participating in the search for technically feasible alternatives on a chemical and use-specific basis.