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In response to regulations targeting per- and polyflourinated substances (PFAS), testing services provider is offering enhanced services at its Bentonville, Arkansas, laboratory, for the testing and identification of these compounds in plastic.

Materials are first tested by the bomb combustion method to determine the presence and quantity of flourine. Subsequent testing using gas and liquid chromotagraphy identifies the specific flourine compounds present. This can be helpful in determining the source of the compound in the supply chain.

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With the European Union and several U.S. states enacting restrictions on “forever chemicals,” TUV Rheinland expects suppliers and OEMs will need to test for PFAS for years to come. In the U.S., individual states have passed regulations on the use of PFAS in a variety of applications, including plastics (especially for food contact products), children's products and personal care products.

TUV Rheinland is expanding PFAS testing capabilities to enable the identification of a wider range of PFAS substances. Source: TUV Rheinland

“We can now identify over 200 individual PFAS substances,” says Geoffrey Bock, technical manager for chemical services at TUV Rheinland. “We are expanding that to 300 here this quarter and eventually up to 500.”

While the total number of PFAS chemicals could number in the 10,000s, testing is currently limited by the development of standards. Standards are developed for chemicals that have been specifically targeted, and are purchased by testing companies like TUV to enable the development of test methods for that specific compound.

By identifying the specific compound, TUV Rheinland can help trace back the source of the PFAS material. It may come from cross contamination at a supplier or from inventory of material that predates the regulations, so getting the supply chain clear and keeping it that way could be a task for years or even decades to come. 

“Due diligence is something that we talk about a lot. Every year we need to go back and take probes and samples for testing and make sure they continue to be compliant,” Bock says.