Ibi, Alicante -- (SBWire) -- 03/15/2012 --The new Directive on Toy Safety, 2009/48/CE establishes the legislative limits on bioavailability of certain elements considered as toxic, for the phenomenon known as migration whereby they go from the plastic matrix to the surface of the toy or childcare article. When quantifying the migration that occurs it is necessary to develop and adjust diverse techniques which must be validated to confirm the precise results. A simple procedure for this validation is to make a comparative check of the results against a correct reference which therefore establishes their accuracy. So, in the case of migration tests, the best option is to employ certified reference materials.
That is why, the organization Colortec Química, S.L., in collaboration with AIJU & IISG, is developing a project for the attainment of certified reference materials for the migration test of the elements stated by the Directive 2009/48/CE in toys and child articles.
While developing this project, carried out in the framework of EUROSTARS European program, several migration tests using different samples were undertaken, till the aimed reference materials acquired a previously determined migration value. The results of all these tests on the intermediate samples, before determining the final concentration of the reference material, further provide data on the variables that could affect the migration phenomenon and the particularities that each element can present.
Luisa Marín, the technical manager in charge of the project within AIJU, says that “the generation of these reference materials can provide an easy and effective procedure for the validation of the analytical techniques employed in the verification of the legislative limits of migration. In toys & child articles, this fact will help to establish the guidelines in the chemical safety of these products established by Directive 2009/48/CE”.
About the Consortium
This project is being carried out by Colortec Química, S.L., which was founded in the mid-eighties and is centred on the chemical industry.
The company is devoted to the design and development of bespoke pigments and dyes, their production and commercialization, as well as the commercialization of other additives for plastics. Its work in the toy industry and childcare article sectors must be underlined.
Collaborating with Colortec Química, S.L., two organizations are participating in the project: on the one hand, AIJU , the Toy Research Institute, a non-profit organization devoted to enterprises from the toy and childcare articles that require scientific and technical services; and, on the other, the Italian company IISG, the Italian reference for the Toy safety, a private company, active since 1978 made up of engineers, chemists and technicians, a leader in toy safety and childcare articles certification.
Colortec Química, AIJU and IISG Create New Reference Materials for the Chemical Safety of Toys
These will allow the exact validation of the analytical techniques used to assess the chemical safety of a product