FAQ

FAQ

Here is the list of common questions and answers. Please use [ Contact Us ] for further information request.

About Fluorinated Water/Oil Repellent Agent

About AsahiGuard E-SERIES

About the Controversial Impurities

About Order Information

About Registration, Certification

Answer

About Fluorinated Water/Oil Repellent Agent

Q.1 :

How does fluorinated repellent agent repel water and oil?

A.1 :

Water resistance happens when surface tension of the solid surface is lower than liquid surface tension.
Fluorinated water/oil repellent agents made with perfluoroalkyl groups easily resist not only water but also highly osmotic liquids such as oil. This is because the perfluoroalkyl substituent group has extraordinarily low surface tension - much lower than water-based or oil-based stains.

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Q.2 :

What is it for? (How is it used?)

A.2 :

AsahiGuard E-SERIES is used to adjust surface energies of many different types of materials, such as woven fabrics, paper, non-woven fabrics & leather. AsahiGuard E-SERIES has been used in a number of different applications, such as sportswear, umbrellas, food packaging, medical garments, and auto parts.

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About AsahiGuard E-SERIES

Q.1 :

What are the differences between E-SERIES and our existing line?

A.1 :

AsahiGuard E-SERIES offers the same high performance characteristics as our existing product line but does not contain perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), longer chain length-perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs) or their precursors at or above detceucrtrieont lidmeittection limits.

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Q.2 :

About the product line

A.2 :

Currently, our primary grades are AG-E060 for paper processing applications and AG-E061 for fabrics. We are expanding AsahiGuard E-SERIES product line to cover more specific market segments, such as medical applications.

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Q.3 :

What are the characteristics of AsahiGuard E-SERIES?

A.3 :

E-SERIES products do not contain PFOS or PFOA, nor do they contain PFOS/PFOA precursors, longer chain length PFCAs or PFCA precursors (at or above current detection limits).

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About the Controversial Impurities

Q.1 :

What is PFOA?

A.1 :

PFOA (perfluoro octanoic acid) is used as a polymerization aid in the production of fluorinated plastic resins and is contained in fluorinated water/oil repellant agents in unintended trace amounts. PFOA has been detected at very low levels in wildlife, human blood and environment.

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Q.2 :

What is PFHxA?

A.2 :

AsahiGuard E-SERIES is a copolymer that contains a fluorinated monomer building block with six perfluoronated carbon atoms in the Rf Group. The ultimate degradation product of polymer, should it become degraded, is PFHxA (perfluoro hexanoic acid). When/if degradation occurs, the number of perfluoronated carbon atoms in the Rf group changes from 6 to 5.
Compared to PFOS which has 8 carbons in Rf group or PFOA which has 7 carbons, PFHxA has only 5 carbons. Scientific data demonstrate that PFHxA's toxicity and bioaccumulation are much lower than for PFOS and PFOA.

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Q.3 :

What is PFOS?

A.3 :

Key raw materials of fluorinated water/oil repellent agents are made by either telomerization method or electrochemical fluorination method.
AsahiGuard E-SERIES' key raw material has been made through the telomerization method.
PFOS is the key raw material for legacy fluorinated water/oil repellent agents made through the electrochemical fluorination method, and is also ultimately a decomposition product of PFOS-based water/oil repellent agents (discontinued).

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About Order Information

Q.1 :

Where can we purchase AsahiGuard E-SERIES?

A.1 :

Meisei Chemical Co., Ltd. is our distributor within Japan. Please feel free to contact us here for information on distributors in your country.

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About Registration, Certification

Q.1 :

What is the registration status as a chemical substance in Japan & other countries?

A.1 :

Asahi Glass Co. has completed the registration processes for Japan, the European Union nations and the United States. AG-E060 is approved under by the USFDA Food Contact Substance Notifications. For more details on the product registration status of our grades, please refer to the Registration Related Page.

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