Low-toxicity crosslinker portfolio could lead to leather options, DSM says
Dutch chemicals company Royal DSM has announced a new crosslinker portfolio called NeoAdd PAX, offering what the company has called low-toxicity and high-performance.
The new, patent-pending polymeric aziridine crosslinker products will “drive safety across a wide range of industries”, DSM said at the time of the announcement. It added that this range will open up new possibilities for it in a diverse set of markets, including leather coatings.
It said that, around the world, end consumers and regulatory bodies are “increasingly concerned by the potential toxicity” of existing crosslinking solutions, adding that currently available carbodiimide crosslinkers “typically offer lower toxicity but compromise functional performance”. At the same time traditional aziridine crosslinkers deliver higher levels of performance “but potentially impact the health of people and planet”.
In line with a commitment to phase out all chemicals of high concern from its final products by 2025, DSM has developed a new polymeric aziridine technology that it claims will deliver high levels of performance as well as “very low toxicity”.
The chemical design and high molecular weight of the NeoAdd PAX crosslinker range gives it high levels of chemical and water resistance, plus good adhesion to a wide range of substrates, including leather. They require no stoving or heating after application. The products are fully REACH compliant and their low toxicity profile “dramatically decreases the labelling requirements” compared to conventional aziridine crosslinkers, DSM said.
