Number

164-EN

Section

General Section

Use

Abstract

The Jegrelius Institute initiated a project in 2011 which was aimed at evaluating several alternatives to Bisphenol A (BPA) used as a colour developer in thermal paper that was being supplied by companies. One part of the project was to investigate what compound companies used instead of BPA in paper manufactured as bisphenol-free. After the project one likely candidate which was not a bisphenol-type compound was identified; Pergafast 201.

Substituted substances

Alternative Substances

Reliability of information

Evidence of implementation: there is evidence that the solution was implemented and in use at time of publication

Reason substitution

CMR
vPvB
PBT
other toxic effects
ecotoxicity

Hazard Assessment

Substance to be substituted: Bisphenol A is a Substance of very high concern and is included on the REACH restriction list, according to Article 73 of Regulation (EG) No. 1907/2006. (REACH Regulation). Alternative substance: Pergafast 201 is not listed in the SUBSPORTplus Database. It should however be pointed out that Pergafast 201 has not been as extensively examined as Bisphenol A.

Description of Substitution

During the fall of 2010, the Jegrelius Institute published a report about the presence of Bisphenol A in receipts. The report stated that the high levels of BPA in receipts might pose a health hazard for cashiers and similar people who are handling many receipts daily. One of the companies whose receipts were found to include high amounts of BPA was a regional transportation company. The company reacted and substituted their receipts to a bisphenol-free option. The Jegrelius Institute were then contacted and asked to evaluate these new kinds of receipts to determine whether they were a better option from a health and environmental aspect. Since the specifics about which compound was actually present in the receipts instead of BPA was confidential, Jegrelius first approach was to investigate what substance could be present in the receipts instead of BPA. They did this via a market analysis where they identified all available alternatives listed by the EPA initiative; BPA Alternatives in Thermal Paper Partnership. From this list they identified one substance which seems to be produced by a number of companies and which corresponds to the small amounts of information Jegrelius managed to extract from the producer of the bisphenol-free paper. This compound, which in other words probably is the bisphenol alternative marketed by a number of companies is the substance N-(p-toluene sulfonyl)-N'-(3-(p-toluene sulfonyloxy)phenyl)urea 3-({[(4-methylphenyl)sulfonyl]carbamoyl}amino)phenyl 4-methylbenzenesulfonate,or as it is more commonly called: Pergafast 201. It is the only reasonable alternative that seems to be manufactured in large scale and which is not just another kind of bisphenol (like Bisphenol S). Pergafast 201 is a known working alternative to BPA as stated by both the American EPA and the Australian Department of Health and Ageing. It is classified as R51/53 which means: toxic to aquatic organisms, may cause long-term adverse effects in the aquatic environment, it is also not easily degraded in the environment. Pergafast 201 does however seem to be a better alternative than BPA since it does not show any PBT or vPvB properties. Its health effects have not been studied as intensively as BPA´s but the tests that have been made did not give rise to any risk phrases.

Case/substitution evaluation

Bisphenol A is classified as a potential sensitizer and an endocrine disruptor. Even though the amounts of Bisphenol A on each receipt is relatively small, a person like a cashier who is handling a lot of receipts every day could be affected in a negative way due to the exposure. The alternative, Pergafast 201, carries none of the classifications associated with health hazards to humans; it could however be dangerous if released into the aquatic environment. Effects on the environment should be examined in more detail.

State of implementation

In use

Enterprise using the alternative

http://www.ltr.se/

Availability ofAlternative

Alternative is available from a number of suppliers.

Type of information supplier

User
Research

Contact

www.jegrelius.se

Further information

ECHA-Newsletter May 2019: Moving away from BPA in thermal paper

Workshop dedicated to the substitution of bisphenol A in thermal papers in Brussels on 26 March 2019: presentations: Pergafast®201 Solenis

INERIS: Bisphenols substitutionNews, 09/24/2018: 200 chemicals with a chemical structure similar to bisphenol A may be on the European market

Martin Eckardt, Thomas J. Simat, Chemosphere, Volume 186, November 2017, Pages 1016-1025 Bisphenol A and alternatives in thermal paper receipts - a German market analysis from 2015 to 2017

TU Dresden: Phenolische und nicht-phenolische Farbentwickler sowie extrahierbare Sensitizer in Thermopapieren eine Marktübersicht https://www.chm.tu-dresden.de/lc2/dateien/2015_Eckardt_Poster_Thermopapier.pdf

EPA: Bisphenol A alternatives in thermal paper, 2015 https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-08/documents/bpa_final.pdf

RIVM: Analysis of alternatives for BPA in thermal paper, 2014 https://www.rivm.nl/documenten/analysis-of-alternatives-for-bpa-in-thermal-paper-0

Danish EPA: Alternative technologies and substances to bisphenol A (BPA) in thermal paper receipts, 2014 https://mst.dk/service/publikationer/publikationsarkiv/2014/apr/alternative-technologies-and-substances-to-bisphenol-a-bpa-in-thermal-paper-receipts/

Publication source: author, company, institute, year

Authors: Tomas Östberg and Lena Stigh Company: Jegrelius Institute for Applied Green Chemistry Year: 2011

Date, reviewed

November 26, 2021