HAZARDOUS PROPERTIES OF BROMINATED, PHOSPHORUS, CHLORINATED, NITROGEN AND MINERAL FLAME RETARDANTS IN PLASTICS WHICH MAY HINDER THEIR RECYCLING

Flame retardants are numerous and some of them are (re)classified with time as hazardous for the man and the environment. A list of 69 flame retardants used in EU was set from three sources and their chemical properties were searched in their registration dossier at ECHA. Substance self-classifications (hazard statement assignment by the registrant) frequently indicate no hazard or data not available, while for the same substances a re-evaluation by ECHA is underway as persistent, bioaccumulative, toxic or endocrine disruptor. When the substance has hazard statement(s), the concentration that triggers the classification of a plastic as hazardous when it is a waste can be compared to the functional concentration, when available. Registration dossiers should be completed for the many “non-available” information. Of these 69 substances, 12 (= 17%) are used at concentrations greater than those making plastic waste hazardous and 13 (= 19%) are under re-evaluation by ECHA. These 12 or 13 substances should not become “legacy” substances which hinder the recycling of plastics. The sorting (mainly by density) and management options of these flame-retarded plastics are discussed. The technical concentration limit of 2000 mg total Br/kg for sorting should not be modified as it includes all organobromine substances currently reassessed by ECHA. A two-step sorting process is necessary to avoid the loss of non-hazardous dense plastics.