Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC)

Introduction

Lubrizol's TempRite^® engineered polymers provide polymer technologies designed to solve some of today's toughest building and industrial challenges. As the inventors of chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC), Lubrizol formulates CPVC to produce end-products with superior properties and consistent quality that meet customer needs. The core brands, FlowGuard Gold^®, BlazeMaster^® and Corzan^® pipe and fittings, now includes an expanded product portfolio with industrial sheet and lining, formulations that improve the performance of various building materials and custom fabrication. Solvent cements are used to join the pipes and fittings.

Applications

TempRite^® CPVC compounds are sold to licensed manufacturers who produce pipe and fittings sold under the brand names of FlowGuard Gold^® for use in water distribution systems, BlazeMaster^® for use in fire sprinkler systems and Corzan^® for use in larger water distribution systems for commercial applications as well as industrial ducting, sheet/lining and piping systems. . These products and systems are corrosion resistant and are more cost effective than traditional metal, while providing significant labor savings due to the ease of instillation.

Lubrizol CPVC products have been used for decades in a wide array of applications ranging from single family homes to high-rise buildings such as hotels and dormitories, to industrial buildings and manufacturing sites. Our CPVC has been successfully used in piping systems for nearly 50 years globally.

Physical and Chemical Properties

Lubrizol CPVC products are sold as powders or pellets. CPVC, a high molecular weight polymer, is compounded with additives to provide functional properties such as increased stability and color. These products enable customers to manufacture systems that are immune to pitting, scaling, and corrosion, provide the needed mechanical strength for high pressure or for other applications and enable the systems to be used at high temperatures. Also, these products will not burn without another source of fuel because of the self-extinguishing nature of the CPVC polymer.

Health Effects

Because of its high molecular weight, CPVC is not expected to be absorbed by the body. Exposures to the powders may cause irritation of the eyes, skin and respiratory tract. Lubrizol CPVC products have received extensive review and toxicological evaluation. Many of these products have been certified by NSF International under NSF/ANSI Standard 14 Plastic Piping System Components and Related Materials and under NSF/ANSI Standard 61 Drinking Water System Components - Heath Effects.

The safety and acceptability of CPVC drinking water pipe also has been well studied by the State of California. In January 2007, the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) published the certification of the CPVC Plastic Pipe Environmental Impact Report (EIR) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the adoption of regulations permitting statewide residential use of CPVC plastic plumbing pipe. The certification of the EIR was the culmination of more than 20 years of review of health, environmental, safety and regulatory information. The certification process and the final EIR provided an exhaustive review and assessment of all these areas of concern and potential impacts considering comments. The EIR concluded that there were no significant health effect impacts on worker health and safety, drinking water safety or fire hazard.

Environmental Effects

Lubrizol CPVC products are high molecular weight polymers that are not water-soluble and not expected to pose any environmental hazard. The functional additives typically are expected to be either held within the polymer matrix and/or to be released slowly at diminishing levels. The low potential for migration at significant levels is supported by the certifications by NSF International.

Lubrizol products and systems also have received extensive review and evaluation of potential environmental effects and impacts as part of the January 2007 EIR conducted by the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) on CPVC Plastic Pipe pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The EIR concluded that there were no significant environmental effect impacts on air quality, manufacturing, or solid waste including the potential for the production of dioxin-like substances.

An ISO-compliant, peer-reviewed Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) also was conducted to compare the environmental impact of BlazeMaster^® fire sprinkler pipe and fittings with steel. The results of the study showed that BlazeMaster pipe and fitting was more sustainable. Environmental impacts were lower for metal depletion, fossil depletion, terrestrial acidification, freshwater eutrophication, climate change, ozone depletion, human toxicity, freshwater ecotoxicity, photochemical oxidation, terrestrial ecotoxicity, water depletion and energy consumption (both non-renewable and renewable energy use). For human toxicity and freshwater ecotoxicity, the difference was pronounced. The only exception was for the category of ozone depletion.

Regulatory Information

FlowGuard Gold, BlazeMaster, and Corzan pipe and fittings are regulated by national, state, and local building code bodies. Lubrizol CPVC products and systems also are certified for safety and performance by non-governmental organizations such as NSF International, which has developed and has maintained their drinking water systems component certification process with support from U.S. EPA and utilizing the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) process.

Exposure Potential

Lubrizol CPVC products are sold to customers who manufacture pipe, fitting and other building materials. Based on their physical properties, workers may be exposed to these products by dermal contact during the manufacture of the article. There also is a potential for inhalation exposure when working with powder compound. Vapors may be generated during processing. Once the articles are manufactured, they are not expected to pose a health concern. However, dermal and inhalation exposure to the solvent cements that are used to join the pipe and fittings can occur during instillation.

Risk Management

Information on the safe handling of these products is provided through material safety data sheets to workers who make the products and who manufacture the pipe.. These documents provide a broad range of safety information including hazard warnings and recommendations on exposure controls. They note that engineering controls are needed to control exposures and specify what personal protective equipment is needed. Labels on the solvent cements also provide hazard warnings to installers and ASTM F402 provides guidance on the safe handling of solvent cements.

During the manufacture of these products, engineering controls and work practices are used to minimize exposure to vapors and dust. Good industrial hygiene practices and gloves are used to avoid skin contact. Local exhaust ventilation is used to draw the dust away from workers to prevent routine exposures. Employees working in areas where exposure levels exceed the recommended workplace standard are required to wear an approved respirator equipped with a high efficiency particulate filter.

Worker health is monitored through the Lubrizol Occupational Health Surveillance Program.

Conclusion

Lubrizol provides polymer technologies designed to solve some of today's needs and tomorrow's challenges. The exceptional physical and functional properties of these products and systems make them ideal for use in fire sprinkler systems, commercial/household plumbing systems, and industrial ducting, sheet/lining, and piping systems, particularly where corrosion resistance, mechanical strength at high pressures and temperatures, and cost-effectiveness are important.

Lubrizol CPVC products have received extensive review and toxicological evaluation of potential health and environmental hazards and performance. Many of these products are certified by NSF International and by national, state, and local code bodies. The State of California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) also has certified the use of the CPVC Plastic Pipe for statewide residential use of CPVC plastic plumbing pipe as part of the 2007 Environmental Impact Report (EIR) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Furthermore, an LCA comparing the environmental impact of BlazeMaster^® fire sprinkler pipe and fittings with steel has shown that BlazeMaster^® pipe and fitting is more sustainable.

Although workers may be exposed to these products by dermal contact or inhalation of dust or vapors during the manufacture of articles containing CPVC products, the potential for exposure and for health effects to occur is mitigated by the use of engineering controls and work practices. Potential health effects from the inhalation of vapors from or dermal contact with solvent cements during instillation pipe systems is readily mitigated by following standard practice for safe handling of solvent cements with ASTM F402.

TempRite® Engineered Polymers