Since 2009, SEKISUI Eslon is working on the phasing out of the usage of lead based stabilizers. The company has now succeeded in producing all products lead free.
SEKISUI Eslon, located in Roermond, is specialized in the production of building materials made from recyclable PVC. This kind of plastic is a polymer, which is unstable in its pure form and therefore needs to be stabilized. Over the last decades, SEKISUI Eslon used lead (Pb) based chemicals to stabilize most rigid PVC worldwide. Due to the fact that lead is classified as a dangerous substance, the company decided in 2009 to participate in the joined voluntary commitment to phase out the usage of the lead based stabilizers. The commitment has been engaged by the European Stabiliser Producers Association (ESPA) all combined in the Vinyl Plus programme of the European PVC industry.
For SEKISUI Eslon it was obvious to replace the lead for calcium/zinc (CaZn) based stabilizer, because some of its products were already produced with this ingredient. In addition, CaZn-based stabilizers have key advantages over lead stabilizers: they are safer, they have environmental friendlier properties and a positive influence on the colour intensity.
However, the process of replacement was a challenge. During the first phase, it turned out, that the CaZn stabilizer used so far was not suitable for all applications and therefore required the development of several new CaZn stabilized compounds.
In terms of processing the CaZn stabilizer formulation is more complex than Pb stabilizer and must therefore be adjusted individually to meet customer demands. For this reason, it is more challenging to achieve the desired level of quality. At the end of 2015 SEKISUI Eslon finally succeeded to achieve a quality level of CaZn stabilized products that is equal or even exceeds the quality level of Pb stabilized products.
