Special Producers of ecological adhesives

THE FIGHT AGAINST VOC

A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE ‘ENEMY’: WHAT ARE VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS?

Photo – Pallmann

Ecology is in the news more than ever before, as we note, for instance, from the many items which the recent climate convention in Glasgow threw up. In the parquet industry, too, green awareness continues to grow, and that’s a good thing. Working with products which cause as little harm as possible benefits the climate, floor users, and parquet floor fitters themselves. Various developments mean that adhesives are now increasingly ‘harmless’.

Result of reaction

What is it that makes an adhesive ‘ecological’? To answer that question, we need to know firstly what an adhesive actually does. Basically, an adhesive is a substance which joins objects together by creating a reaction between the various ingredients of the adhesive itself or between the adhesive and an external ingredient. This creates an adhesive reaction which is either physical or chemical. In short, the former does not create a chemical reaction, but the latter does. With the latter you can make a further subdivision into different reactions and, therefore, different adhesives. For instance, with dual component adhesives a chemical reaction takes place when the components are joined together. With other adhesives the reaction can be created by other factors such as contact with damp in the atmosphere.

Strictly speaking, you have to look at the ingredients used to assess potentially harmful effects to the environment. Even a young child knows that in order to reduce emissions you have to reduce or even eliminate the quantity of chemical products. Just as with a car, you keep emission values low both before and during the production of the adhesive and afterwards during the application. And so, you make sure that you strive for zero emissions of so called volatile organic compounds (VOC).

VOC in a nutshell

It is appropriate here to give some explanation of VOC and for our source we consulted the Federal Public Service for Health, Food Chain Safety, en the Environment. They told us that volatile organic compounds are a collection of substances which belong to various chemical families and share the common feature of evaporating quickly at room temperature. The fact is that VOC are composed of carbon and hydrogen.

VOC can have two sorts of origin, namely an anthropogenic and a natural one. The former substances originate from refinement, the evaporation of organic solvents, unburnt gases, and such like, and the latter are created by emissions by plants or certain fermentations. Depending on their origin, they are biologically degradable faster or slower through bacteria and moulds, and even through plants, or degradable through UV or through ozone. Due to their volatile character, they can spread close to or a long way from their emission place. And so, they can have direct and indirect effects.

Impact of VOC on health

That is all very well, but what we particularly want to know is what impact they have on our health. You should realise that total VOC emissions indicate the organic pollution of the indoor environment. In contrast to what is generally accepted, VOC as a whole do not have a direct effect on health.

With regard to these VOC, researchers are studying on the one hand the effects of individual substances and, on the other hand, the ‘cocktail effect’ of some compounds which are present in the environment, but the latter should not be confused with the effect of VOC in general. With individual substances, researchers have discovered that some are more problematic than others. Some of them, such as ethanol, for instance, are harmless in ordinary concentrations in the indoor air, others have an effect on the airways (formaldehyde), others are allergenic (limonene), and others still are carcinogenic (benzene or formaldehyde). And so, an evaluation of the specific risks is necessary for each of the substances of the VOC family.

With ‘cocktails’, a mixture of pollutant substances originating from various sources can have pernicious effects on the environment or health, whilst the individual substances on their own do not have those effects. Yet it’s not per se about compounds of VOC amongst themselves. For instance, the effect of particles on the lungs is worsened by the presence of formaldehyde (which is a VOC).

What's on the market ?

Blanchon

The Blanchon range includes three products: two adhesives spread with a spatula and one adhesive in cordon. They all have an A+ rating: AB 2000: This is a strong hybrid polymer adhesive for the full glueing of solid parquet floors in large sizes up to 200mm wide and composite floors up to 400mm wide. It can be used with floor heating. AB 1300: This is a strong polymer hybrid adhesive for the full glueing of solid wooden floors up to 130mm wide and composite floors up to 260mm wide. It is flexible and elastic, with good adhesion on most floors, and is very easy to spread. AB 2000 and AB 1300 have EC1R (GEV-EMICODE) ratings and efficient packs: an aluminium bag of 6kg, easy to spread, and practical. This fully reduces waste and each supplied box contains two bags. Adhesive for glueing in cordon: This is a hybrid polymer adhesive supplied in the form of aluminium ‘sausage’ to be used with a special gun. It is ideal for vertical surfaces such as skirting boards and is also used a lot for cordon fittings on floors. It has excellent flow resistance, sets quickly with strong adhesion, easy extrusion, even at low temperatures.

Bona

With a long history of durability, Bona is still a pioneer in durable innovations and solutions. In the 1970s, Bona started with waterborne parquet lacquers, was then the first to introduce dust-free sanding, and then came the development of parquet oil from renewable raw materials. Bona was also the first player to replace solvent parquet adhesive with silane adhesive. Silane parquet adhesives yield a flexible and strong floor, contain no water or solvents, and are therefore entirely safe to use with no threat to your health. With the silane adhesive Bona Quantum and the next generation of parquet adhesives, they are going another step further in the Bona-Durability-Journey by making use of a durable pack made from recycled plastic buckets. The new pack has a modern and attractive look and is made for 75% from recycled plastic. This reduces CO² emissions by up to 13%. It also reduces their CO² footprint by about 60%. Bona also deploys IML technology (in mould labelling): Packs are produced and labelled during the process. The new pack is in line with their goals and results as recorded in their durability report. Their business choices are geared to the 17 global objectives of the UN. Their adhesives are updated and refined to meet the latest environmental standards. Their certificates include EMICODE EC1, DiBt, and GREENGUARD, and that ensures ecological products and a healthy workplace for professionals. Bona goes on with its progressive and durable approach.

Chimiver

UNISIL is a prepolymer based, single-component hydro-curing adhesive with a silanic termination (MS technology). This adhesive is classified as "ELASTIC" according to ISO 17178. Recommended for gluing prefinished wooden floor onto marble, grit, tiles, ceramic or marble-chip floor, etc. Also suitable for gluing wooden floor onto underfloor heating and cooling system. CERTIFICATES: EC1; ATTESTATION CCA-Environmentally Compatible Product (Certificate issued by Department BEST - Politecnico of Milan CCA Registration No. 20206); Sound Reduction (CSI Test Report No. 0056/DC/ACU/06); Heat conductivity (CSI Test Report No. 0020/ DC/TTS/06). UNISIL can contribute to the achievement of QI CREDIT 4.1 according to the parameters of the GEV dated 03 March 2009, because it meets the certification LEED protocol (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

Emfi

Emfi’s adhesives are ecological since they don’t contain any isocyanates or solvents and are graded as EC1+ and A+. These adhesives are suitable for glueing all sorts of solid or composite parquet. They are very easy to apply and you don’t need specific personal protective gear. You are advised simply to work cleanly and not to spread the adhesive onto the parquet. Finally, they don’t have any revolutionary products in the short term for glueing parquet, but they are working on improvements in the medium term.

Soudal

Nowadays, 1-component hybrid adhesives are a familiar segment in the market. They contain no water, solvents, or isocyanates, so they can be used without any extra precautions. Moreover, spilt adhesive can easily be removed without damaging the base. The combination of a high strength and ongoing elasticity means they can be deployed very widely, often even without treating the subfloor first. Thanks to their high elasticity, they give the wood more space to swell and shrink, without compromising on efficiency. Soudal hybrid parquet adhesives comply with the international standard for elastic parquet adhesives, have an EC1+ grade, and stand out for performances and convenience. Furthermore, they are easy to spread, the adhesive grooves show excellent form stability, and they set quickly, things which are all important for a perfectly finished wooden floor. Moreover, all hybrid parquet adhesives from Soudal are used in combination with floor heating and cooling.

STAUF

STAUF develops sustainable adhesives

The adhesives specialist STAUF is currently working on three new developments. With one product each from the dispersion adhesives range, from the silane adhesives range and from the polyurethane adhesives range, the experts at STAUF are developing three adhesives that cover the most diverse areas of parquet installation, but all have two key properties: They have a significantly lower density and thus a much higher range than products previously available on the market. All three adhesives represent the TOP product in the STAUF portfolio with outstanding properties and application approvals. Wider range, less weight With these new developments, STAUF is making a further contribution to greater sustainability in construction chemicals, as they allow significantly more square meters of parquet to be installed per kilogram of adhesive. In addition, the low-density adhesives are significantly lighter than usual adhesives. The lower weight saves resources, has a favorable effect on transport costs and emissions, and above all is easy on the craftsman. The higher range of up to 35%, depending on the adhesive, ensures correspondingly lower consumption. Strong research & development With the new products in the field of sustainable parquet adhesives, STAUF once again proves its traditional strength in research and development. Since the company's foundation, i.e. since 1828, STAUF has repeatedly developed groundbreaking adhesive technologies that have revolutionized the sector. Mapei

Mapei has a wide range of parquet adhesives for each specific base. They present to you the following selection from their range of polymer mono-component adhesives which are ready for use. The Ultrabond Eco S948 1K is a 1-component parquet based on hybrid polymers for solid and multilayer parquet with a long open spreading time. The Ultrabond ECO S955 1 K is a solventless 1-component adhesive which contains no isocyanates and is based on silane polymers for all sorts of parquet. The Ultrabond S968 1K is a solventless 1-component adhesive which contains no isocyanates and is based on silane polymers for all sorts of parquet and has no volatile organic compounds. They always advise you to consult the technical information sheet on www.mapei.be. If you are in any doubt, please ask our Mapei product specialists.

MAPEI HAS A WIDE RANGE OF PARQUET ADHESIVES FOR EACH SPECIFIC BASE.

They present to you the following selection from their range of polymer mono-component adhesives which are ready for use. The Ultrabond Eco S948 1K is a 1-component parquet based on hybrid polymers for solid and multilayer parquet with a long open spreading time. The Ultrabond ECO S955 1K is a solventless 1-component adhesive which contains no isocyanates and is based on silane polymers for all sorts of parquet. The Ultrabond S968 1K is a solventless 1-component adhesive which contains no isocyanates and is based on silane polymers for all sorts of parquet and has no volatile organic compounds.

WE ALWAYS ADVISE YOU TO CONSULT THE TECHNICAL INFORMATION SHEET ON WWW.MAPEI.BE