What are the requirements for screen printing silicone to pass OEKO-Tex certification?
For screen printing silicone to pass OEKO-Tex certification, there are mainly the following requirements:
Requirements for harmful substance limits
Formaldehyde: Different product categories have different requirements. The formaldehyde limit for baby products is 20ppm; the formaldehyde limit for products that come into direct contact with the skin, such as bedding and underwear, is 75ppm; the formaldehyde content of products that do not come into direct contact with the skin, such as outerwear and household decorations, must be less than 300ppm.
Heavy metals: There are strict restrictions on the content of various heavy metal elements, such as lead, cadmium, chromium, etc., to ensure that the content of these heavy metals in screen printing silicone will not cause harm to human health.
Phenols: The use of phenolic substances such as pentachlorophenol is strictly restricted, and their residues must be within the prescribed safety range.
Pesticide residues: It must not contain or is only allowed to contain extremely low amounts of specific pesticide residues to prevent potential harm to the human body during use.
Phthalates: such as diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) are banned, and the content of other phthalates is also strictly limited to protect the health of users.
Organotin compounds: There are strict limit requirements for organotin compounds such as dioctyltin (DOT). The limit for first-level baby products is 1.0 mg/kg, and the limit for other levels of products is 2.0 mg/kg.
Perfluorinated compounds: From January 1, 2024, total fluorine (TF) replaces the limit of extractable organic fluorine (EOF). The total fluorine limit of all product categories is adjusted to 100 mg/kg, and the total fluorine content of personal protective equipment (PPE) is exempted.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH): The total limit of 16 specified PAH substances is 10.0 mg/kg, and the limit of benzo(a)pyrene is 1.0 mg/kg.
Azo dyes: Azo dyes that can decompose harmful aromatic amines are prohibited to ensure the safety of the product.
Carcinogenic and allergenic dyes: Carcinogenic dyes and allergenic dyes must not be contained to avoid adverse effects on human skin and health.
Other performance requirements
pH value: The pH value of the product must be within a certain range to ensure that it will not irritate or damage the skin.
Color fastness: Depending on the use of the product, there are requirements for the color fastness of silk-screen silicone in different environments, such as color fastness to washing, color fastness to friction, color fastness to saliva and sweat, etc., especially for baby and children's products. The color fastness requirements are more stringent.
Odor and volatiles: There must be no unpleasant odor, and the release of organic volatiles must be below the specified limit to ensure the air quality and human health of the use environment.