non toxic adhesive 2

[bobbie5]

Hello every one I am new to this website and I am wondering if any one can help me to find a non toxic adhesive that will bind upholstery material to foam. This is to try and pass an environmental standard. Any help greatly appreciated

 

[unclesyd]

You need to give a little more information.

Does the glue have to flex?

What are the two materials and the type foam, along with is it open or closed cell?

What is the environmental test?

 

[btrueblood]

Well...and what do you mean by toxic, what level is acceptable? Are you concerned with post-cured toxicity, or prior/during curing, i.e. toxic to the workers/installers? Water is toxic, if taken in a large enough dose.

 

[bobbie5]

Hi and thanks for the replys to this. We are manufacturing office chairs and the foam that we are using is open cell and we are gluing a wide range of upholstery materials to it. mostly they would be a polyprop material but often there are woolen fabrics. If the adhesive would have to go around curves and profiles. The test is from NZ it is called Environmental Choice. Regarding what is meant by toxic, I am still trying to get clarification on this from the administrators but all it says in the criteria is all adhesives that are used in the manufacture of the product must be non toxic

 

[unclesyd]

You need to get the definition of Non-Toxic like btruebood states your toxic definition is too broad to even start making a suggestion.

Something to think about.
To get around some of your problems with different adhesives you could, if possible, have your foam laminated to the covering prior to use. This would solve a lot adhesive problems and limit the amount of work required by your people. This limits a lot of exposure to different chemicals. On top of that you have a 100% bond to fabric covering.

 

[bobbie5]

We are currently using a solvent based adhesive. In the absence of a definition of toxic is there a natural or more environmentally option available?
What do you mean by foam laminated to the covering prior to use.At the moment we are laminating the material to the foam and then upholstering it.
I will come back as soon as I get a definition of toxic.
Thanks for the info and time

 

[btrueblood]

Urethane, epoxy, probably a few other glue systems are non-solvent based, and don't give off (very) toxic fumes as they cure (sorry for the weasel words, but without a definition of toxic, they need to be there). The problem with the urethane and epoxy glues is that the un-cured parts of the glues can be quite toxic (both to workers or to the environment in case of spills). You could consider natural glue systems, e.g. hide glues...completely natural based...but you have to go through a lot of horses to make it. There are hot-melt polyester adhesives that are pretty non-toxic, but I hate when the stuff drools onto my fingers, ouch!

Regarding the specification, are you talking about this one:

http://www.enviro-choice.org.nz/specifications/EC-32-07FurnitureandFittings.pdf

Found it at the top of a google search...

From 5.2.3(d) in that spec., it would appear that you want an adhesive with less than 0.5% formaldehyde content.

The remainder of the spec. requirements for adhesives is in section 5.2.12, and I agree it is pretty vaguely worded. Mostly, they would be reviewing the MSDS for the wet glue, and be looking for VOC's and carcinogenic chemicals. I would think urethane 2-part adhesives would be able to meet the requirements, possibly some of the acrylic adhesives, and likely silicone adhesives as well. You should contact adhesive suppliers (National Starch Co, 3M, Devcon) for glues that meet your needs, then look for low-toxicity versions of them. 3M makes a product, for instance, called 3M™ Fastbond™ Water-Based Adhesive, that I found in a about 60 seconds of browsing on their website. Whether any of these would work adequately for your furniture, I couldn't say. Good luck!

 

[bobbie5]

Hey btrueblood thank you for this it is most helpful and informative.

Regards

Bobbie

 

[unclesyd]

Looks like this could be the answer to your problem.
This day and time you can't go wrong with a green product.

http://www.simalfa.com/Products/Overview.htm