Nanoscale copper phthalocyanine (n-CuPc) has been utilized to enhance or modify the properties of many materials and products, including printing inks, coatings for automobile production, plastics and textiles. n-CuPc can improve the mechanical properties and add new features to the products, such as improved transparency, lightfastness (stability under irradiation), heat stability, chemical and bleed resistance, improved processing capabilities and durability. It is estimated that Europe consumed 21 thousand metric tons of CuPc pigments (dry weight basis, both as nano-forms (n-CuPc) and as non-nano-forms) in 2010, of which 25-30% were used in paints and coatings, a significant part in nanoform. The automobile industry is the largest market for organic pigments due to the increasing customer preferences for enhanced colors.
The use of n-CuPc can potentially lead to the release of n-CuPc which may pose environmental and occupational risks, especially to automechanics performing car maintenance and repairs. Even though the automobile industry has risk management measures in place (local exhaust of sanding equipment, face masks) to reduce occupational exposure, the knowledge on fate and hazard of sanding fragments is required for efficient risk management. Furthermore, very little is known about the exposure and hazard of released n-CuPc from automobile coatings in environmental and occupational settings.
The objective of NanoERA project is to address both the release of n-CuPc-containing fragments from commercial coatings in realistic occupational situations and the hazard of the released fragments to human health so as to provide information to the automobile industry regarding the potential risk to the workers employed in this sector.
