At Seal Bond, we take the health and safety of our customers and employees very seriously. Our goal is to ensure that you are informed of any and all safety considerations when storing, using and disposing of our products. As such, we take pride in our strict adherence to OSHA and State Regulation’s and typically err on the cautionary side when there is room for interpretation of the requirements. This short post explains when and why we add hazard statements and pictograms to some of our products
Safety Data Sheets (SDS), formerly known as Material Safety Data Sheets, are among the most important documents that any chemical manufacturer, distributor or customer uses. The SDS includes information such as the properties of each chemical; the physical, health, and environmental health hazards; protective measures; and safety precautions for handling, storing, and transporting the chemical (see source). In some cases, the letter of the law requires us to provide hazard statements, product warnings and disclose ingredients even though they do not always apply to our products while they are being dispensed, in the process of curing or even after they are fully cured.
OSHA Standards, Laws and Regulations are actively maintained and updated. If you have a question or concern about the contents of an SDS, we recommend first checking with the manufacturer to ensure that you have the most up-to-date version of the document.
Of the several hundred regulated compounds that OSHA regulates, there are 3 that Seal Bond uses in some (not all) of our formulations. Each of the 3 substances identified by OSHA as hazardous specify that they are considered hazardous only when they are “airborne, unbound particles of respirable size.” In typical storage and use scenarios, these substances remain physically bound in the adhesive and sealant formulations and do not present a hazard to the user. However, based on historical OSHA interpretations (see here or here for examples), we list these ingredients because it is possible for them to be released if the product is ever ground or sanded to a powder of respirable size and the dust is inhaled. One additional component, Diisononyl Phthalate (DINP) is regulated by California Proposition 65 and not by OSHA.
For more information on the relevant substances, see the links below:
Titanium Dioxide – (airborne, unbound particles of respirable size)
- Titanium dioxide is a fine, white powder that provides a bright, white pigment.
Silica, crystalline (airborne particles of respirable size)
- Crystalline silica is a basic component of soil, sand, granite, and many other minerals. Quartz is the most common form of crystalline silica.
Carbon Black (airborne particles of respirable size)
- Carbon black is composed of fine particles consisting mainly of carbon. Commonly used as an additive to rubber products.
- DINP belongs to a family of chemicals called phthalates, which are added to some plastics to make them flexible.
At Seal Bond, we are committed to developing industry leading adhesive, sealants and coatings that are exceedingly safe to use and do not present health hazards to our employees or customers. While we intend to continue disclosing any and all information about the health and safety considerations for our products, we want you to know that they are generally much safer to use than alternative products that contain solvents, isocyanate or are high in VOC’s.
Additional resources:
Safety Data Sheet Content and Organization: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3514.html
OSHA Standards for Hazardous or Toxic Susbstancse : https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_id=10099&p_table=STANDARDS
OSAH Safety Data Sheet Minimum Requirements: https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/hazcom-appendix-d.html