Finding nPB Aerosol Alternatives for Degreasing: Options From Ecolink

Like many hazardous solvents that predate it, nPB (a.k.a. 1-bromopane and n-propyl bromide) experienced widespread use as an industrial degreasing solvent but was eventually found to be too toxic to use in large quantities. nPB has had a successful, 20-year run as a first line degreasing solvent, but the time has come for large-scale users of the solvent to replace it.

Many companies and organizations began implementing nPB aerosol alternatives shortly after the U.S. Department of Health’s National Toxicology Program (NTP) discovered that nPB is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen,” but some entities are still in need of replacement options. If your company or organization is among them, Ecolink provides the following nPB aerosol alternatives for industrial level degreasing applications.

  • FluoSolv®

FluoSolv® solvents are non-flammable, non-hazardous and non-ozone depleting proprietary blends of high purity, azeotropic fluorinatedorder-now fluids and trans-dichloroethylene (t-DCE), CAS # 156-60-5, for industrial use without the adverse effects on environment or your people. Trust FluoSolv® for your high precision requirements as drop-in replacements for:

  • Ecolink 2005 & Ecolink 3005
  • Brominated solvents: nPB (n-propyl bromide) also known as 1-Bromopropane or (1-BP), CAS # 106-94-5
  • Chlorinated solvents: PERC (Tetrachloroethylene or Perchloroethylene), CAS # 127-18-4 and TCE (Trichloroethylene), CAS # 79-01-6
  • Chlorofluorocarbon solvents: CFC-113 (Trichlorotrifluoromethane) also known as FREON, CAS # 76-13-1
  • Hydrochlorofluorocarbon solvents: HCFC-141b (1,1-dichloro-1fluoroethane), CAS # 1717-00-6 and HCFC-225ca/cb (3,3-Dichloro-1,1,1,2,2-pentafluoropropane HCFC-225ca), CAS # 422-56-0 and (1,3-Dichloro-1,1,2,2,3-pentafluoropropane HCFC-225cb) CAS # 507-55-1
  • Ecolink NF-45 (A)

Ecolink NF-45 offers the following positives: non-flammable formulation, low odor, non-conductive formulation, fast dry time, and no residue. Approved applications include: cleaning a wide variety of critical surfaces, including plastic, rubber, and metal; and cleaning a broad spectrum of electrical components, including contacts and relays.

  • Electron (A)

Electron yields the following benefits: no water, fully evaporative, no residue, high dielectric strength, no EPA listed hazardous ingredients, no OSHA PEL or ACGIH TLV listed ingredients, and no surface leakage of current in immediate residue tests. Intended applications include: cleaning oil, dirt, and carbon from all types of electrical apparatuses.

  •    Pen-T-10 (A)

Pen-T-10 delivers the following advantages: non-flammable formulation, ability to release frozen parts (e.g. nuts and bolts), no ozone depleting solvents or propellants, the deposit of a coating that protects ferrous metals against corrosion, and no residue build up. Approved applications include: voltage stabilization of cleaned electrical equipment, freeing up frozen parts, and removal of common industrial soils from critical surfaces.

  • Positron (A)

Positron offers the following benefits: low odor, ultra-low residue, low hazardous fume emission, high dielectric strength, highly evaporative, aggressive action compared to older solvents, and no SARA or RCRA listed ingredients. Intended applications include: cleaning practically all types of electrical parts and cleaning practically all types of mechanical parts.    

  • Select Free (A)

Select Free has the following positives: non-flammable formulation, fully evaporative, no CFCs, high dielectric strength, and no residue. Approved applications include: cleaning contacts, relays, and other critical electronic components, specifically when no other stock nPB aerosol alternatives are capable of meeting cleaning requirements.

Custom Solvents Available

If one of the nPB aerosol alternatives above doesn’t meet your requirements, we can formulate a custom solvent that perfectly matches your needs. To getting started on receiving business-critical nPB aerosol alternatives, call us today at (800) 563-1305, or fill out the contact form on our website. We look forward to supporting your cleaning needs.

 

Should you Reduce Tetrachloroethylene (PERC) Exposure?

Since the mid-1930s, PERC, also known as perchloroethylene, PCE, tetrachloroethylene, and tetrachloroethene, has been an effective organic solvent that has mainly been used in the dry cleaning industry and to a lesser extent, in metal degreasing. PERC was an ideal dry cleaning solvent because of its excellent cleaning power, stable, non-flammable properties, and gentleness towards many articles of clothing. Many of the qualities that made PERC a desirable dry cleaning solvent also contributed to its usefulness in vapor degreasing. However, there were concerns that workers who routinely breathed excessive amounts of the solvent vapor or spilled PERC on their skin were at risk of developing health problems. In 1993, research data had led many organizations to believe that PERC was a potential human carcinogen; as a result, California and the EPA decided to begin regulating the use of PERC by establishing a Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) and producing advisory content concerning workplace exposure reduction. The current Occupational Safety and Health Administration PEL for PERC is 100 parts per million (8-hour TWA).

Although the dry cleaning industry has refined the control of PERC and created new equipment that has much lower exposure than older models, there is still a necessity to reduce employee exposure to the solvent in order to prevent health hazards that could result from long-term exposure.

Possible health effects of PERC Exposure

  • Dizziness, drowsiness, and loss of coordination
  • Mild loss of memory, visual perception, and reaction time after several years of exposure
  • Redness and blistering of the skin after extended dermal contact.

Primary Sources of PERC Exposure

  • Loading dirty garments into the machine (when perc-contaminated air is displaced and forced out of the machine)
  • Removing garments, especially thick articles, before the drying cycle is completed
  • Transferring solvent-laden clothes into the dryer
  • Lint and button filter cleaning
  • Raking out the still (distillation unit residue)
  • Solvent filter changes
  • Water separator maintenance
  • Hazardous waste management

Replacement: Safe for You and Your Employees!

With increasing regulations regarding PERC usage, the best solution to keep employees safe and prevent compliance headaches is replace PERC and use FluoSolv! FluoSolv is a solvent degreaser that is also commonly used for metal degreasing. If our existing blends of FluoSolv aren’t right for you, then contact us to create a custom blend that fits your needs! There are no charges for samples (up to 1-gallon), so check our FluoSolv page or give us a call today! 

 

Why Make Ecolink Your Choice for Chemical Toxic Reduction?

Since chemistry caught up with the capitalistic ambitions of the the Industrial Revolution, industrial companies and organizations have used toxic chemicals for various commercial and industrial work processes, such as defluxing metal after heat treating processes, producing asphalt, dry cleaning, and the list goes on.

Today, these toxic chemicals have largely fallen out of favor for three reasons: They’re dangerous to human health, harmful to the environment, and, in some cases, their use is heavily regulated by government agencies at the federal, state, and/or municipal level. If you need to replace a solvent that has undesirable traits in order to achieve chemical toxic reduction, Ecolink is an excellent choice to help you do it for the reasons below.

We Tell You the Truth About Cleaners

It would be great if there were an industrial cleaner that was safe enough to cause no negative reactions in humans or the environment. However, the reality is that such a solution doesn’t exist. Environmentally preferred and environmentally safe cleaners are safer than toxic solutions they’re formulated to replace. However, solutions that promote chemical toxic reduction still require safety considerations.

As we state on our business website, “There are no ‘perfect substitutes’ [that] reduce or eliminate hazardous solvents in the workplace. Every cleaning solution carries a matrix of risk factors for environmental, health, or safety reasons. Inevitably, any chemical choice involves weighing the alternatives.”

  1. We Maintain an Environmentally Preferred Choices Ladder

Not all environmentally preferred cleaners are equal in terms of safety. That’s why we created an Environmentally Preferred Choices Ladder that shows precisely how environmentally preferred a cleaner is. The ladder has seven levels of “environmental preference” that are applied to cleaners. See the ladder by visiting this link on our business website.

  1. We Apprise You of Upcoming Chemical Regulations

Industrial cleaners can go from unregulated to heavily regulated or banned within a few months’ time. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) often gets the ball rolling by placing a solvent on a list of reportable chemicals — a move that’s often followed by significantly regulating the solvent or banning it by placing the solvents on the EPA’s List of Lists.

When the EPA decides to regulate or ban a solvent for large-scale use, it wants to give companies and organizations time to find replacement solvents that work like the old solvent, but have a vastly better safety profile. We want to give you the same opportunity. That’s why we report on upcoming EPA chemical regulations as soon as they’re announced.

  1. We Offer Stock Products and Custom Formulations

In some cases, achieving chemical toxic reduction by replacing a toxic solvent with one that has the same cleaning power can be tough, especially if you limit your options to stock solvents. Sometimes, stock solutions work. However, when they don’t, having a custom cleaner formulated is often the best option for receiving a cleaner that works great and has fewer negative variables.

Contact Us Today

If you need to reevaluate your line of industrial solvents to achieve chemical toxic reduction, Ecolink is here to help. Get started on selecting solvents that have a better safety profile — and, therefore, better usability — by calling (800) 563-1305, or use our contact form. We look forward to helping you select safer solvents!

The Health Dangers of Using nPB Vapor Degreaser

Over the past 20 years, nPB (a.k.a. n-propyl bromide and 1-bromopropane) has become a go-to solvent in numerous industries, from dry cleaning, to furniture construction, to asphalt production. During roughly the same time period, OSHA and the EPA have steadily studied the health dangers of the solvent based on scientific investigation.

What emerges is a portrait of an nPB vapor degreaser that can produce both acute and long-term negative health effects in those who use it. These effects are the primary reason why many organizations move to replace an nPB vapor degreaser with one that has a safer profile.

Acute Health Effects of nPB Exposure

The most talked health effects of nPB exposure are chronic effects, as these represent the greatest threat to the health of the user. But short-term use of nPB can also produce negative health effects, which are acute in nature, particularly:

 

  • Dizziness
  • Mental confusion
  • Slurred speech
  • Temporary paresthesia
  • Visual disturbances
  • Respiratory distress

The effects often cease when exposure to nPB ceases, although studies have shown it can take some workers over one year to fully recover. In such cases, exposure has typically occurred over the course of weeks or months and not during a one-time use of the solvent. However, even a single exposure to nPB can be enough to take a worker off of the work floor for a day. By harming workers’ health, nPB can hurt their company’s productivity.

Long-Term Health Effects of nPB Exposure

Workers who are exposed to nPB vapor degreaser over the course of many months or years can develop long-term, negative health effects that result in permanent disability. Four of the most noted chronic health conditions that are caused by consistent nPB exposure are:

  • Neurological damage
  • Cancer (based on animal studies)
  • Permanent Paresthesia
  • Difficulty walking (due to paresthesia)

Over the years, chronic conditions such as these have formed the backbone of numerous chemical injury lawsuits that workers pursue against their employers on the basis on nPB exposure. As with acute health effects of nPB vapor degreaser exposure, long-term effects don’t just harm workers. They can have a profound, negative impact on a company’s bottom line.

Replacement is the Optimal Solution

There are several ways to reduce exposure to nPB vapor degreaser, such as using a special air filtration system in the environment where nPB is used, outfitting workers with a high level of personal protective equipment (PPE), and using a vapor degreasing system that produces to no emissions in the work environment. However, the most cost effective, hassle-free option for eliminating health threats of nPB is to replace the solvent with a safer one.

This is what Ecolink can help you do. We offer a broad selection degreasing solvents that are safer than many of their predecessors, yet still deliver the same efficacy. To get started on receiving an nPB vapor degreaser drop-in solution, call us today at (800) 563-1305, or contact us here on our website. We look forward to helping you protect your workers’ health.

 

 

Buying Commercial Degreasers: Tips For Refining Product Selection

Degreaser is one of the most widely used categories of commercial solvents. That’s why there are literally thousands of degreaser solutions you could buy. While having a wide range of options is never a bad thing when it comes to solvent selection, all of the choices eventually have to be narrowed down to one. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some helpful criteria that your company or organization can use to narrow the search for commercial degreasers.

Solvent Grade

Degreasers tend be formulated with three types of end users in mind: industrial users, commercial users, and residential users. Because commercial degreasers tend to deliver more cleaning power by volume than residential grade degreasers that are used in the home, make sure that your search only focuses on commercial grade degreasing solutions.

Degreasing Application

If you need a degreaser for a specific type of degreasing operation, such as degreasing energized motors, this can also help you refine your choice. For example, for cleaning an energized motor, you would ideally want a degreaser that is non-flammable (i.e., no flashpoint), has a dielectric formulation, evaporates quickly, and leaves behind no residue.

VOC Content

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may be “organic”, but this doesn’t mean that they’re safe to use in large quantities. Commercial degreasers that have high VOC content can cause short-term and chronic health problems due to incidental and prolonged exposure, respectively. Avoiding high VOC content helps workers stay healthy, and thus supports business productivity.

EPA Measures

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to regulate the large-scale use of hazardous chemicals, announcing upcoming regulations well in advance, so companies and organizations have time to phase out dangerous chemicals. If a degreaser contains a chemical that’s slated to be regulated by the EPA, be sure to remove it from your list of solvent options.

Container Options

In what types of containers do you need a commercial degreasers: aerosol, hand wipes, spray bottles, etc.? In addition, what size of container do you need (aerosol bottles or large, aerosol cylinders, for example)? If a supplier doesn’t offer commercial degreasers in the types of containers you need, it provides another way to narrow your options and choose the best.

Custom Formulation

If after days of searching online for readymade commercial degreasers, you simply can’t find a solution that meets all of your requirements, you may be in the market for custom formulated degreasers. Unlike readymade solvents that are formulated to meet a wide variety of solvent needs, custom blended solvents are designed to meet the specific needs of a single customer.

Shopping For Degreasers?

Whether you need an eco friendly commercial degreaser for general cleaning applications, specific degreasing operations, or both, Ecolink can supply the solution you need, and provide it in a formulation that minimizes negative impact to your workers and the environment. For assistance selecting the right commercial degreaser for your cleaning requirements and safety needs, please call us today at (800) 563-1305, or fill out the contact form on our website.