OCSiAl is the world's first manufacturer of single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) to complete REACH registration, taking the lead in raising the transparency of nanotube management worldwide and boosting their applications in a wide range of industries. REACH registration was successfully completed thanks to the collaboration between OCSiAl’s Health and Safety Department, Envigo and Intertek, which have jointly completed the comprehensive work involved in demonstrating compliance with the high standards and requirements of REACH.
Over the course of 6 months, highly qualified European experts conducted extensive research and testing on potentially hazardous properties of SWCNT. These tests have provided a view of the properties of SWCNT for the safe use of the substance.
The efforts of OCSiAl, Envigo and Intertek have resulted in the technical, and highly detailed, description of SWCNT, their nature and their potential risks, and in specifications on particular methods of risk management. This in-depth information will support the expansion of mass applications of SWCNT in various industries, including consumable products.
OCSiAl is the only company in the market that is capable of producing industrial-scale volumes of single wall carbon nanotubes. With its REACH registration, OCSiAl currently commercializes 10 tonnes of single wall carbon nanotubes in Europe. OCSiAl’s global production capacity of TUBALL™ will reach 60 tonnes next year. REACH registration will support OCSiAl’s drive to further scale up its nanotube manufacturing volumes and to boost the company’s presence in the European market.
According to OCSiAl’s EHS Lead Manager, Gunther Van Kerckhove, “OCSiAl shares REACH’s goals and considers the completion of mandatory registration as one of the milestones in its path towards consistent transparency, providing the European market, and global community, with a more comprehensive understanding of nanotubes, their nature and safety.” As part of OCSiAl’s commitment to product stewardship, the company also completed mandatory nanomaterials registration in France and Belgium in August 2016. Additionally, OCSiAl participates in the “ EC4SafeNano ” project, that is a part of the H2020 framework programme funded by the European Commission . Project aims to ensure the sustainable production and use of nanotechnologies as well as an understanding of the environmental, health and safety risks associated with nanotechnology and the resulting materials and products.
Adrian Hardy, Chief Executive Officer at Envigo commented: ““We are very pleased to have been part of this successful collaboration – bringing our skills, expertise and comprehensive REACH testing capabilities to help OCSiAl meet all the requirements of REACH for TUBALL™ . Fostering innovation through our regulatory research services is always a great plus for us. We are therefore delighted to have worked closely with InterTek and OCSiAl to enable the REACH registration of single wall carbon nanotubes – an industry first.”
OCSiAl
will continue to provide the global market with a thorough understanding of
single wall carbon nanotubes, their nature, safety and unlimited potential for use
in a wide range of industries and products.
About REACH
REACH is a regulation of the
European Union, adopted to improve the protection of human health and the
environment from the risks that can be posed by chemicals. REACH establishes
procedures for collecting and assessing information on the properties and
hazards of
all chemical substances, not only those used in
chemical processes but also for end-consumer use, for example in paints and in
articles such as clothes and furniture. Therefore, the regulation has a wide
impact on the compliance of most companies that have products for the EU market
. Registration in accordance with
REACH grants companies permission to produce and market chemicals in the European
market at an industrial scale.
About OCSiAl
OCSiAl is the first company to develop breakthrough technology for the production of single wall carbon nanotubes, enabling large-scale commercial use for the first time. In 2014 it entered the nanomaterials market with the universal additive TUBALL™, which contains 75% of single wall carbon nanotubes. OCSiAl is developing technologies based on nanotubes for a range of applications including lithium-ion batteries, elastomers, plastics, transparent conductive films, composite materials and others. In 2016 it launched a unique technology – the super concentrate TUBALL™ MATRIX. OCSiAl has regional offices in the USA, Luxembourg, Russia, Korea, China, Hong Kong and India. Details about the company are available on the OCSiAl homepage: www.ocsial.com