Chlorinated paraffins in hinges of kitchen appliances

Jannik Sprengel,Walter Vetter

doi:10.1007/s10661-021-09023-z

Jannik Sprengel, Walter Vetter

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09023-z

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Abstract

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are anthropogenic pollutants of growing environmental concern. These highly complex mixtures of thousands of homologs and congeners are usually applied as additives in lubricants or as flame retardants and plasticizers in polymers and paints. Recent studies indicated the presence of high amounts of CPs in the kitchen environment whose sources could not be unequivocally identified. One option was the use of CPs as or in lubricants of hinges. To test this hypothesis, we performed wipe tests on lubricants on 29 hinges of different types of kitchen appliances (refrigerators, baking ovens, dishwashers, freezers, microwave oven, pasta machine, food processor, steam cooker) and analyzed them for short-chain CPs (SCCPs) and medium-chain CPs (MCCPs). CPs were detected in 21 samples (72%). Per wipe, SCCP concentrations ranged between 0.02 and 10 µg (median 0.23 µg), while MCCPs ranged from 0.09 to 750 µg (median 1.0 µg). Highest MCCP amounts (380 and 750 µg per wipe, respectively) were determined in new and unused appliances. A medium correlation between SCCP content and appliance age was observed, but no additional statistic correlation between SCCP/MCCP amount and appliance type or manufacturer could be observed. CPs released from hinges by volatilization, abrasion, and cleaning processes could enter the environment and come in contact with persons living in the corresponding households.

Highlights

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are high-production volume polyhalogenated compounds whose safety is more and more disputed (Glüge et al, 2016, 2018; Zellmer et al, 2020)
Polychlorinated decanes to tridecanes are termed “short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs),” polychlorinated tetra- to heptadecanes are termed “medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs),” while those with more than seventeen carbon atoms are termed “long-chain chlorinated paraffins (LCCPs).”. This differentiation according to chain length is of great importance because SCCPs were recently classified as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) by addition to Annex A of the Stockholm
Virtually no restrictions exist for the use of MCCPs and LCCPs

Summary

Introduction

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are high-production volume polyhalogenated compounds whose safety is more and more disputed (Glüge et al, 2016, 2018; Zellmer et al, 2020) This highly complex group of polychlorinated n-alkanes is commonly subdivided according to the carbon chain length ranges which were available to producers as feedstocks from industrial petroleum hydrocarbon fractionations (Tomy et al, 1997). Polychlorinated decanes to tridecanes are termed “short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs),” polychlorinated tetra- to heptadecanes are termed “medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs),” while those with more than seventeen carbon atoms are termed “long-chain chlorinated paraffins (LCCPs).”. This differentiation according to chain length is of great importance because SCCPs were recently classified as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) by addition to Annex A of the Stockholm. Virtually no restrictions exist for the use of MCCPs and LCCPs

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