A perspective on hazardous chemical substitution in consumer products

Hazardous chemicals in everyday use products can negatively affect our health and environment around us. Legislations restricting their use and the growing awareness among consumers have encouraged industries to replace them with alternatives that are either less hazardous or non-hazardous. In this paper, current status of hazardous chemical substitution and challenges faced in assessment of their substitution in consumer products are illustrated through case studies. Apart from a persistent issue of data scarcity, the challenges in assessment and identification of suitable substitutes are, to name a few, setting the criteria for identification of potential candidate for substitution; benchmarking comparative hazard assessment; knowledge representation for efficient and systematic navigation of the database; and model-based substitution methods that can complement experiment-based approaches. An overview of the available methods, tools and databases for chemical substitution is presented highlighting their aims and applicability. Most of the available guidelines are found to provide guiding principles focusing on a handful of high-profile hazardous chemicals with know-how limited by specific goals and applications. A generic framework for chemical substitution is a step forward and its scope and significance are highlighted through a conceptual example.

Automated summary

Hazardous chemicals in everyday use products can be harmful to health and the environment. Legislation and consumer awareness have led to industries replacing these chemicals with safer alternatives. Challenges in chemical substitution include data scarcity, setting identification criteria, benchmarking hazard assessment, knowledge representation, and model-based substitution methods. Available methods and tools focus on high-profile hazardous chemicals, but a generic framework for chemical substitution is needed for more comprehensive and effective guidance.