Greenlist(tm) Bulletin 9/24/04
Greenlist(tm) Bulletin 9/24/04
This is the weekly bulletin of the TURI Library, reporting a selection of recently published titles we have acquired. Our pledge is to keep the bulletin relevant to your work and brief -- no more than 10 titles. (usually)
Titles here, abstracts below them:- Study Links Brain Disorder to Chemicals, September 2004
- Hair Dye Contact Allergy: Quantitative Exposure Assessment of Selected Products and Clinical Cases, 2004
- Intelligent Glass Beats the Heat, August 2004
- Ultraviolet Cure-in-Place Technology: Using Polyester Acrylate Oligomers in Wood Coatings, February 2004
- Back to Nature - Textile Fibers Come Full Circle: New Synthetic Fibers Come from Natural Sources, January 2004
- Manufacturing and Reliability of Pb-free and Mixed System Assemblies (SnPb/Pb-Free) in Avionics Environments, January/March 2004
- Composite Materials: Custom Blending of Materials with Distinct Characteristics Leads to Advanced Composites with Tailor-Made Properties, August 2004
- Artists Learn About Chemical Hazards: Colleges Adapt Chemical Safety Programs to Accommodate Unique Needs of Budding Artists, April 2004
- Rethinking the Way We Design: How a Company Designs Can Enhance Customer Value, Opening Many Doors to New Markets, Fall 2004
- Association of Domestic Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds With Asthma in Young Children, 2004
1. TITLE Study Links Brain Disorder to Chemicals
AUTHOR Sissell, Kara
SOURCE Chemical Week, September 1, 2004, vol. 166, no. 28, p. 29
ABSTRACT The UK journal Public Health has published results of a study that links a three-fold rise in some brain diseases to toxic air emissions, pesticides, mercury, and other pollutants. Researchers form Bournemouth University and the University of Southampton identified a sharp increase in the rate of some brain diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, in
Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, the UK, and the US. The study compares death rates in countries from 1979 to 1999. Chemical industry representatives say the report is far from establishing a link in the increase in brain disorders and the rise in use of chemicals and pesticides.
2. TITLE Hair Dye Contact Allergy: Quantitative Exposure Assessment of Selected Products and Clinical Cases
AUTHOR Sosted, Heidi, et. al.
SOURCE Contact Dermatitis, vol. 50, 2004, pp. 344-348
ABSTRACT Coloring of hair can cause severe allergic contact dermatitis. The most frequently reported hair dye allergens are p-phenylenediamine (PPD) and toluene-2,5-diamine, which are included in, respectively, the patch test standard series and the hairdressers series. The aim of the present study was to identify dye precursors and couplers in hair dyeing products causing clinical hair dye dermatitis and to compare the data with the data with the contents of these compounds in a randomly selected set of similar products. The patient material comprised 9 cases of characteristic clinical allergic hair dye reaction, where exposure history and patch testing had identified a specific hair dye product as the cause of the reaction. The 9 products used by the patients were subjected to chemical analysis. 8 hair dye products contained toluene-2,5-diamine. PPD was found in 1 product, and m-aminophenol and p-aminophenol were found in 3 products. The concentration levels were similar in the patient's products compared to a random sample of 16 hair dye products. The concentration present of toluene-2,5-diamine elicited allergic reactions in concentrations that were 10-fold lower than the legal EU limit of 10%. Hair dye allergy may cause sever clinical reactions, and the current regulation is insufficient in protection of the users. A preventive strategy is needed.
3. TITLE Intelligent Glass Beats the Heat
SOURCE Chemical & Engineering News, August 23, 2004, vol. 82, no. 34, p. 27
ABSTRACT A bright idea in window coatings may bring relief from high temperatures and high air conditioning bills. Ivan P. Parkin of University College London, and his colleague Troy D. Manning, currently working at the University of Liverpool, in England, developed an intelligent window coating that allows visible light to pass through the glass but will reflect infrared radiation at temperatures above 29 degrees C. The coating is made mostly of vanadium dioxide, a material that scientists knew could switch between absorbing and reflecting IR light, depending upon the electrons' arrangement. Until now, however, this switch occurred around 70 degrees C. - too warm to be practical. By adding 1.9% tungsten to the vanadium dioxide coating, Parkin and Manning were able to lower the thermochromic switching temperature. They also say the process they use to make the smart windows in well suited to high-throughput manufacturing. However, because the coating turns the glass a greenish-yellow hue, the team hopes to tone down the color before trying to bring it to market.
4. TITLE Ultraviolet Cure-in-Place Technology: Using Polyester Acrylate Oligomers in Wood Coatings
AUTHOR Burak, Lujean
SOURCE Paint & Coatings Industry, February 2004, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 28-34
ABSTRACT The wood used for furniture, flooring and other interior decoration applications is particularly susceptible to abrasion, scratches and general soiling, as well as water and chemical staining. To protect the sensitive substrate, wood coatings must serve as a strong barrier against external threats. Of course, they must also impart high gloss and other decorative touches. Increasingly, formulators are turning to ultraviolet (UV)-cure technology to
develop high-performance wood coatings. Through careful raw material selection, UV-cure coatings formulators can more easily manipulate physical properties, such as chemical and weather resistance, as well as mechanical properties, such as tensile strength and elongation. Controlling these properties enables formulators to create customized coatings that meet specific performance criteria for each application (i.e., excellent abrasion resistance for wood flooring, superior water resistance for wood furniture). In addition to performance benefits, UV-cure technology provides processing advantages over traditional solventborne technology. First, because there are no solvents involved, formulators are able to reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions for simpler EPA compliance. UV-cure coatings also dry more quickly than their solventborne counterparts, speeding production times for increased profitability.
But in order to reap all of the performance and processing benefits of UV-cure technology, formulators must work with the right raw materials for each application. The most critical raw material is the oligomer, which imparts the basic properties that shape the final coating. This article provides a quick look at the detailed results of a recent study that pitted a new polyester
acrylate oligomer against several industry-standard oligomers. The new oligomer outperformed the industry standards in a series of tests, proving it is ideal for UV-cure wood coating applications.
5. TITLE Back to Nature - Textile Fibers Come Full Circle: New Synthetic Fibers Come from Natural Sources
AUTHOR Thiry, Maria C.
SOURCE AATCC Review, January 2004, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 7-11
ABSTRACT In the beginning, textile fibers came from the natural world: animal skins, hair, and wool; silk from silkworms; and plants like flax, cotton, and hemp. For centuries, all textiles came from fibers that were harvested from a plant, animal, or insect. Then, at the beginning of the 20th century, people discovered that they could create textile fibers of their own. Those early synthetic fibers still originated in a natural source - cellulose form wood pulp - but soon enough in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, a stream of synthetic fibers came on the scene that owed their origins to chemical plants instead of plants that could be grown in a field. Now at the beginning of the 21st century, the trend in fiber research has come full circle. While the popularity of completely synthetic fibers remains high, in many cases attention s once again being focused on synthetic fibers that come from natural sources.
6. TITLE Manufacturing and Reliability of Pb-free and Mixed System Assemblies (SnPb/Pb-Free) in Avionics Environments
AUTHOR Nelson, Dave, et al.
SOURCE SMTA News & Journal of Surface Mount Technology, January-March 2004, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 17-24
ABSTRACT Due to environmental and political concerns, and although significant uncertainties remain about the potential for lead contained in electronic products to have any significant impact on the environment, the use of lead in electronic products is an increasingly visible topic. Because of processing or reliability limitations, entire product categories are being exempted from legislation banning the use of lead. It appears that multi-track electronics manufacturing, where some assemblies will use traditional eutectic solder while others will use various lead-free alloys, is a certainty. A result of multi-track manufacturing will be products that require the use of both SnPb and lead-free components. The intent of this study is to provide the avionics industry with reliability data that addresses lead-free and mixed system assemblies.
7. TITLE Composite Materials: Custom Blending of Materials with Distinct Characteristics Leads to Advanced Composites with Tailor-Made Properties
AUTHOR Jacoby, Mitch
SOURCE Chemical & Engineering News, August 30, 2004, pp. 34-39
ABSTRACT By blending distinct components into composites, scientists and engineers make advanced materials with improved properties that outperform the constituents of the composites. Plastics impregnated with glass or carbon fibers, for example, can be made tougher, stronger, and stiffer than the pristine plastic and fiber from which the composite is made. And by tailoring the composition and processing conditions, researchers can prepare custom materials endowed with combinations of properties that aren't found in other materials. The unique blend of properties has led manufacturers to replace steel and other conventional materials with advance composites in many industries including aerospace, automobile, defense, and sports and leisure. Although such materials have been used in commercial applications for decades, researchers continue to look for ways to improve materials' properties
and performance and reduce costs. Some of the strategies include using new or modified components and developing new manufacturing processes. One approach that has drawn a lot of attention in recent years is incorporating nanometer-sized additives or nanoscale structure to make new types of engineering materials.
8. TITLE Artists Learn About Chemical Hazards: Colleges Adapt Chemical Safety Programs to Accommodate Unique Needs of Budding Artists
AUTHOR Rovner, Sophie L.
SOURCE Chemical & Engineering News, April 12, 2004, vol. 82, no. 15, pp. 32-33
ABSTRACT The world of art may be sublime, but it also can be dangerous. Artists work in an environment filled with potential hazards, including toxic solvents, corrosive liquids, and suffocating gases. Not so long ago, they might not have taken these dangers seriously. But these days, colleges that train artists are including coursework in health and safety instruction. And increasingly, the colleges are designing that instruction so it's palatable to art students.
9. TITLE Rethinking the Way We Design: How a Company Designs Can Enhance Customer Value, Opening Many Doors to New Markets
AUTHOR Elisman, Boris
SOURCE Green@Work, Fall 2004, pp. 30-33
ABSTRACT A commitment to environmental stewardship is, for most companies, no longer simply an option, but a requirement to be competitive in a global market. Governmental regulations, organized interests, consumer preferences and social expectations increasingly focus on protecting the natural world and ensuring a healthy environment for the future. Today's environmental leaders realize that the scope of the commitment has fundamentally changed as well. It has expanded from looking at a few isolated dimensions of environmental impact - such as manufacturing or recycling - to a broader vision that addresses a product's environmental effects throughout its life cycle, from design to manufacture to customer use and finally to end-of-life recycling.
10. TITLE Association of Domestic Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds With Asthma in Young Children
AUTHOR Rumchev, K., et al.
SOURCE Thorax, vol. 59, 2004, pp. 746-751
ABSTRACT Aim: To investigate the association between domestic exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and asthma in young children. The study concluded that exposure to VOCs at levels below currently accepted recommendations may increase the risk of childhood asthma.
Measurement of total VOCs may underestimate the risks associated with individual compounds.
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