{"id":2180,"date":"2026-04-07T09:46:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T08:46:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/?p=2180"},"modified":"2026-04-07T09:46:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T08:46:37","slug":"farewell-to-pfas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/?p=2180","title":{"rendered":"Farewell to PFAS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\" The combination of regulatory pressure and customers who want to be able to tell a solid environmental story, drives sustainability in the printing industry. Regulatory pressure recently increased. Under the European Union\u2019s (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation more per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are being banned. These compounds are widely used, not just in printing but pretty much everywhere. The problem is that although they are very useful, PFAS are harmful to human health and the environment and they take ages to break down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the EU almost 99% of Europeans have PFAS in their blood and PFAS have even been found in unborn babies. The EU\u2019s new restrictions will also impact the global printing industry, because these \u2018forever chemicals\u2019 are widely used for inks, toners and coatings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many thousands of different PFAS, developed since the 1930s when polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE was first discovered. PTFE was probably the slipperiest material on the planet and it found its way to market as Teflon in the 1940s. It was used to coat frying pans and other cookware among other applications. Wondrously non-sticky, Teflon prevented omelettes and fried eggs from fusing with the frying pan and was a revelation to home cooks. But unfortunately Teflon could also produce noxious fumes and flake off into food, potentially poisoning cooks and diners. So not so good, but thanks to innovative chemists things changed and Teflon is now formulated with safe ingredients. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But PFAS are still the basis for other surface coatings. They are used to provide stain, oil, heat and water resistance. In the graphics business they can improve toner performance, rub resistance and water repellence, so they\u2019re especially attractive for packaging printers. But they can aid toner transfer and wear resistance so they are also handy for many other printing applications, including textile printing. But PFAS are persistent pollutants that accumulate in the soil, in fish and animals, and of course in humans, hence the EU\u2019s progressive restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having already banned the worst PFAS, the EU is banning the PFHxA sub-group of PFAS from use in certain product groups, including textiles and food packaging. The ban will impact makers of inks and toners, and of coatings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our industry has a good track record when it comes to innovation. When Indigo first introduced its colour digital press at IPEX in 1993, the ink was easily removed with an eraser. Indigo founder, Benny Landa, didn\u2019t much appreciate the question about what could be expected for the future of ElectroInk. But whatever chemicals were involved, the adhesion problem was soon nailed. It was innovation in action and innovation, like change, never stops. The eventual phasing out of PFAS will inevitably create opportunities for ink and toner makers. We can expect advances in materials science too, so colourant\/substrate interactions will keep working as desired. Restrictions on the use of PFAS in inks and toners will lead to an even more sustainable printing industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

***<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article was produced by the <\/em>Verdigris Project,<\/em><\/a> an industry initiative intended to raise awareness of print\u2019s positive environmental impact. This weekly commentary helps printing companies keep up to date with environmental standards, and how environmentally friendly business management can help improve their bottom lines. Verdigris is supported by the following companies: <\/em>Agfa Graphics<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>EFI<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Fespa<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Fujifilm<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>HP<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Kodak<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Miraclon<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Ricoh<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Unity Publishing<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>Xeikon<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please also include the Verdigris logo and a link to this website. If you don\u2019t already have our logos, you can get them by downloading the <\/em>\u201cPublishers Bundle\u201d<\/em><\/a>. And don\u2019t forget terms of the Creative Commons license at the footer of the site. Enjoy!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner The combination of regulatory pressure and customers who want to be able to tell a solid environmental story, drives sustainability in the printing industry. Regulatory pressure recently increased. Under the European Union\u2019s (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation more per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2180"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2181,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2180\/revisions\/2181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaldots.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}