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EU Regulation 494/2011 – use of cadmium pigments in plastics
13/10/2011
EU Regulation 494/2011 – use of cadmium pigments in plastics
You may have already seen the above Regulation, which was published in the EU’s Official Journal on 21st May 2011.
This Regulation was designed to amend entry 23 in REACH Annex XVII to add restrictions covering the use of cadmium in brazing sticks and of cadmium-containing alloys in cheap children’s trinkets mainly imported from China and India.
In accordance with the Regulation high density polyethylene (HDPE) has been added to the list in which cadmium pigments may not be used. The existing list of polymers (e.g. LDPE) in which cadmium may not be used remains unchanged.
As a result of this we would like to inform you that cadmium pigments may not be used in any polymer in the European Union unless they are used for safety reasons. Matrix Polymers is already in the process to remove the cadmium pigments from any HDPE resin. Our sales representatives will contact the customers who will be affected by the Regulation.
Please do not hesitate to contact us for any enquiries you may have.
Aldo Quaratino
Technical Department
A PDF version of this announcement is available here.
