Jul. 11th, 2025

Industrial Chemical

UK Environment Agency's Latest Flame Retardant Scoping Review: Insights and Implications

From mobile phone casings to home sofas, and from automotive interiors to architectural coatings, flame retardants (FRs) serve as "fire guards" and are ubiquitous in modern life. However, while these chemicals safeguard us, they have also drawn global attention due to potential environmental and health risks. In June 2025, the UK Environment Agency released its "Flame Retardant Scoping Review," a report that provides an in-depth analysis of the application status, hazard characteristics, and regulatory direction of flame retardants in the UK market. This article will integrate the core content and extensive data from the report to offer a comprehensive overview of the scientific background, market insights, and implications for the global industry.

Function and Classification of Flame Retardants

Flame retardants are a class of chemical substances that reduce the flammability of materials through physical or chemical means. They are widely used in plastics, textiles, coatings, and adhesives. Their mechanisms of action include diluting flammable gases, lowering combustion temperatures, forming a protective char layer, or interfering with free-radical combustion reactions. The report categorizes flame retardants into three application types:

  • Additive: Physically mixed into the material, they can easily leach out through washing or wear. Commonly used in thermoplastics.

  • Reactive: Chemically bonded into the polymer structure, offering high stability and low loss. Commonly used in thermosetting plastics.

  • Polymeric: Achieves flame retardancy through modification of the polymer chain (e.g., brominated polystyrene). This application is less common.

In terms of chemical categories, the report identifies six major classes: inorganic (e.g., aluminum hydroxide), brominated organic, chlorinated organic, organophosphorus (mainly phosphate esters), halogenated organophosphorus, and nitrogen-based, along with one unclassified organic flame retardant (polyol). Flame retardants are indispensable for fire safety, particularly in the UK, where demand is high due to stringent standards like the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. The report estimates the total tonnage of flame retardants in the UK market to be between 82,000 and 826,000 tonnes per year, accounting for 2.6% to 26% of the global market. Of this, inorganic flame retardants constitute 77% (approximately 63,000 to 636,000 tonnes/year), organophosphorus compounds account for 11% (approximately 9,000 to 91,000 tonnes/year), while other types like brominated organic and chlorinated organic each make up no more than 4%.

Risks and Hazards of Flame Retardants

Although flame retardants play a crucial role in preventing the spread of fire, their environmental and health risks have raised widespread concern. The report's analysis of the hazard characteristics of 124 flame retardants shows that approximately 38 (one-third) possess at least two hazardous properties, including:

  • Persistence, Bioaccumulation, and Toxicity (PBT/vPvB):13 substances (10%) may persist in the environment for long periods and accumulate in organisms, threatening ecosystems.

  • Ecotoxicity:30 substances (24%) are harmful to wildlife even at very low concentrations.

  • Human Health Toxicity:38 substances (30%) may be carcinogenic, affect reproduction, or cause specific organ damage at low exposure levels.

  • Endocrine Disruption:25 substances (20%) may interfere with the endocrine systems of humans or animals.

  • Persistence, Mobility, and Toxicity (PMT/vPvM):22 substances (18%) can migrate widely in the environment, increasing exposure risks.

Exposure modeling indicates that industrial use in the production of flame-retardant textiles can lead to high local chemical releases, with organophosphorus flame retardants (such as Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate TCEP, and Tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate TCIPP) posing a higher risk. UK environmental monitoring data further confirms the widespread presence of flame retardants in various media:

  • Water Bodies: TCEP and TCIPP have been detected in the River Thames and in drinking water in the West Midlands.

  • Sediments: Brominated flame retardants (e.g., BDE-28, -206) and organophosphorus compounds (e.g., TMTP) have been found in the River Thames and UK freshwater sediments.

  • Air and Dust: TCEP, TCIPP, BDE-100, and others have been detected in indoor and outdoor air in Birmingham, as well as in household and office dust.

  • Food and Biota: BDE-28, TBB, and others have been detected in food samples and breast milk in Birmingham.

These data indicate that the environmental diffusion and biological exposure risks of flame retardants cannot be ignored.

Application of Flame Retardants in the UK Market

The report evaluated 124 flame retardants, including 73 substances registered under UK REACH and 51 substances notified under the Downstream User Import Notification (DUIN) system. These flame retardants are primarily used in plastics, coatings, textiles, and sealants/adhesives. The UK market features a wide variety of flame retardants, some of which are not yet fully registered (the first registration deadline is October 2026). Compared to the global and EU markets, the UK market has unique characteristics:

  • Global: In 2020, the total tonnage was 3.18 million tonnes, with plastics accounting for 85%. Inorganic FRs (like aluminum hydroxide) made up 38%, and organophosphorus FRs 18%. Brominated flame retardants are more common in Asia.

  • EU: In 2015, the total tonnage was 452,000 tonnes, with inorganic FRs (aluminum hydroxide) at 51% and organophosphorus FRs at 18%.

  • UK: Inorganic flame retardants account for 77%, significantly higher than in the global and EU markets, reflecting a preference for lower-risk flame retardants driven by its strict fire safety regulations.

Regulatory Signposts: UK REACH and Global Collaboration

Following Brexit, UK REACH became an independent regulatory framework. Based on various dimensions, such as the inherent hazard properties of flame retardants, exposure assessment, and risk characterization, the report has screened several high-risk flame retardants, including:

  • TBBPA (CAS 79-94-7): Already on the EU REACH SVHC list. EU REACH suspects it has endocrine-disrupting and PBT properties, and it is used in high tonnages.

  • TCIPP (CAS 13674-84-5): The EU has proposed restricting its use in children's products and furniture, pending results from the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) carcinogenicity study.

  • TDCPP (CAS 13674-87-8): Also a chlorinated organophosphate, facing restrictions similar to TCIPP.

  • Chloroalkanes, C14-17 (CAS 85535-85-9): Already on the EU REACH SVHC list and subject to a UK POPs (Persistent Organic Pollutants) proposal.

The report proposes the following regulatory recommendations:

  • Data Completion: Collaborate with industry to collect more precise tonnage and use data by the end of the UK REACH transition period (October 2030).

  • Risk Assessment: Deepen research into environmental and human exposure risks, conducting detailed assessments for high-risk substances (such as organophosphorus compounds).

  • Environmental Monitoring: Strengthen the monitoring of flame retardant concentrations in freshwater, air, food, and biota.

  • International Collaboration: Cooperate with regulatory bodies in the EU, the United Nations, and other countries, focusing on the exposure risks to workers and consumers via indoor dust and air.

Opportunities and Challenges for the Global Chemical Industry

  • Green Technology Innovation: The UK's ban on high-risk flame retardants (such as brominated compounds) has accelerated the development of inorganic, nitrogen-based, and low-toxicity alternatives. Global companies should increase R&D investment to explore bio-based, biodegradable, or low-migration flame retardants. For example, developing new products based on natural phosphate esters or silicon-based flame retardants can meet environmental demands.

  • Upgrading Compliance Management: Drawing lessons from UK REACH, companies need to establish robust data management systems to ensure transparency of information on the physicochemical properties, toxicity, and uses of their flame retardants, thereby proactively meeting the stringent requirements of export markets.

  • Environmental Monitoring Systems: Monitoring data from the UK reveals the diffusion of flame retardants in water, sediment, and biota. Global companies can collaborate with universities and research institutions to conduct local environmental and human exposure studies, building a risk database to support policy-making and corporate decision-making.

  • Alignment with International Standards: Global chemical regulations are becoming stricter, with increasing restrictions on high-risk flame retardants under the Stockholm Convention and EU/UK regulations. Global companies must track international developments and participate in standard-setting to ensure their products meet export market requirements and enhance their global competitiveness.

  • Supply Chain Collaboration: The UK report emphasizes the importance of long-term collaboration with industry. Global companies should strengthen communication with upstream and downstream enterprises to share information on flame retardant use and substitution, optimizing supply chain management and reducing compliance costs.

Future Outlook: A Win-Win Path for Safety and Environmental Protection

The global chemical industry is at a critical stage of green transformation. Faced with global environmental trends and escalating domestic policies, companies must be driven by technological innovation and guaranteed by compliance management to actively embrace low-toxicity, high-efficiency flame retardant technologies. Let us work together to ignite a "green future" for flame retardants and contribute wisdom to a safe and sustainable world.Source: Environment Agency (2025). Flame Retardant Scoping Review.

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