OTL: C6 Power Point Presentation: Environmental Changes to selected Fire Fighting Foam Concentrates, Explained.
OTL manufacture C6 Fire Fighting Foam Concentrates.
7. Background…
It is known that
Telomer-based fluorosurfactants
do not contain PFOS
It is not known
if they degrade into
PFOA
8. Background…
If they do degrade into PFOA,
they too would be classed as
● Bioaccumulative
● Persistent
● Toxic
9. Telomer Research…
In 2003,
an EPA Work Group concluded:
Telomer-based AFFF agents
● are not made with PFOA
● contain no
PFOA-based
product
10. Telomer Research…
PFOA is an
eight carbon molecule (C8)
Most telomer-based flurosurfactants
are derived from
six carbon molecules (C6)
11. Telomer Research…
The EPA Work Group concluded:
There is no known pathway
for C6 flurosurfactants
to break down into PFOA
12. Telomer Research…
However…
This was considered to be
incomplete research, as:
● some telomer molecules
with a carbon chain
greater than C6
are currently
used in some AFFF’s
19. C6 &
environmentally friendly
The move to
fluorosurfactants
As mentioned,
Fluorotelomer & fluorosurfactant
manufacturers in the USA are
committed to remove
● all chemicals containing PFOA
● all chemicals
that can
degrade to PFOA
20. C6 &
environmentally friendly
The move to
fluorosurfactants
As a result,
Telomer molecules with a
carbon chain greater than C6
will effectively
no longer be
available for use
21. C6 &
environmentally friendly
The move to
fluorosurfactants
As discussed,
research to date has concluded:
There is no known pathway
for C6 flurosurfactants
to break down into PFOA
22. C6 &
environmentally friendly
The move to
fluorosurfactants
Accordingly, the way is now clear
for foam manufacturers to begin
developing AFFF’s
with C6 fluorosurfactant
telomer molecules
28. The future :
Protein Foams
Currently,
C6 telomers for certain
Protein Foam formulations
have not been developed … yet !
29. The future :
Foam Training
& System Calibration
Current
recommendations remain:
use Fluorine Free
Mimic / Training Foam
for
● Onshore Training
● System Calibration