Clariant Uses Green Chemistry to Create Safer, Halogen-Free Flame Retardants

Clariant’s halogen-free flame retardants lock in safe fire protection for new class of natural oil based, renewable polyurethane foams.

• Halogen-free, non-migratory Exolit® OP 560 flame retardant remains fixed in renewable PU foams

• 80% less flame retardant required to pass California TB117 flammability test

• Supporting upholstery sector’s move toward renewable materials and environmental protection without compromising fire safety

Green Urethane’s Technology is already available in the US market and uses Natural Oil Polyols (NOP) to produce a range of standard foams for the North American bedding and furniture industries. These more natural foams are easier to produce, and provide better comfort and durability than petrochemical based foams. They have a total bio-renewable content of approximately 35% by weight.

Jeff Rowlands, Director of Green Urethanes Limited comments:

“By using these advances in Green Chemistry, the original safety objectives of Cal TB 117 are still being met; but now with the added assurance that it comes with long-term environmental protection from undesirable emissions. These are positive developments for the upholstery sector and also provide a route to reducing the environmental impact of all foam types including those made for uses which do not need to meet the Cal TB 117 test criteria.”