Calculation and Experimental Validation of a Novel Approach Using Solubility Parameters as Indicators for the Extraction of Additives in Plastics

Abstract

Accurately quantifying chemical additives with adverse health effects in plastic products is critical for environmental safety and risk assessment. In this work, a novel approach using solubility parameters (δ) as indicators for the extraction of additives in plastics was developed. The mechanism was evaluated by using 10 organic solvents with different solubility parameters to extract brominated flame-retardant-decabrominated diphenyl ether (BDE-209) in polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Certified reference materials (CRMs) or CRM candidate materials were applied as matrix materials. The extracted BDE-209 and solubility parameters of solvents could fit into a curve of a quadratic function. The value of abscissa corresponding to the vertex of the function was close to the solubility parameter of plastic calculated by the group contribution method (Δδ < 0.37). Toluene, n-hexane, and acetone were the solvents with high extraction efficiency for PE, PP, and PET, confirming the feasibility of the developed approach. The results of ethyl acetate and acetone indicated the high weight of functional groups affecting the dissolution behavior. The developed approach was further verified by analyzing penta-/ octa-BDE and phthalate esters in PET and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and finally applied to analyze 15 plastic products made of PP, PE, PET, polystyrene, and PVC. The detected tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47), BDE-209, decabromodiphenyl ethane, and di(2-ethylhexyl) terephthalate all matched the approach and verified its practicability for field sample analysis.

Evaluation of the Compatibility of Polyorganylsiloxanes and High-Molecular Polymers Used as Emulsifiers in Finishing Works

“…where 𝜇 ; δp, δs -Hildebrand parameters for polymer and solvent, respectively; ρ -constant equal to 0.686; γp, γs -surface tension of the polymer and solvent, respectively. The value of Ф is calculated as follows (7):…”

“…In the study [6] the physical affinity between the epoxy matrix and the carbon fibers was evaluated using Hansen Solubility Parameters (HSP), high physical compatibility of the polymers was found because their respective HSPs are close. In [7], the authors announced the development of a new approach using the solubility parameters (δ) calculated by the group contribution method as an indicator of the extraction of additives from plastic. Considering the process from a thermodynamic point of view, it can be noted that there is practically no information in the literature on the use of solubility parameters for evaluating the interaction of polyorganylsiloxanes and high molecular weight emulsifiers.…”