United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Pollution Prevention
and Toxics
(7406)
EPA 744-F-95-006
Februarv 1996
vvEPA
Design for the Environment
Flexography Project
U.S. EPA
What Is Design for the
Environment?
The Design for the
Environment (DfE) Program
harnesses EPA's expertise and
leadership to facilitate informa-
tion exchange and research on
risk reduction and pollution
prevention opportunities. DfE
works with both large and
small businesses on a volun-
tary basis, and its cooperative
projects attempt to:
Work with specific industries
to evaluate the risks, perfor-
mance, and costs of alterna-
tive chemicals, processes,
and technologies.
Change general business
practices to incorporate
environmental concerns.
Help individual businesses
undertake environmental
design efforts through the
application of specific tools
and methods.
DfE partners include:
industry
Professional Institutions
Academia
Environmental and Public
Interest Groups
Other Government Agencies
Focusing on
Flexo Inks
More than 1,600 printers in the United States
use flexographic presses. These presses can be
found in facilities ranging from small (less than
10 employees) to large (200 to 300 employees). Flexography is primari-
ly used for printing on consumer packages or labels made of paper, cor-
rugated, and plastic films. In addition, some consumer and commercial
products have parts that are produced oh flexographic presses.
Flexography involves printing from a raised image on a printing plate
made from either rubber or photopolymers with highly fluid, quick-
drying inks. The ink is applied to the raised portion of the plate, and
the image is transferred by the plate to a substrate (e.g., paper, film,
or board). The inks used for flexography are liquid and contain sol-
vents or water. Selection of inks is critical to meeting the quality and
performance requirements for a wide variety of. substrates with vary-
ing printing parameters.
The conventional inks used for flexography consist of solvents made
of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can pose risks to .
human health and to the environment. For this reason, they are regu-
lated as air pollutants and hazardous materials. The VOCs in conven-
tional inks contribute to ozone pollution and can adversely affect, air
quality. These inks also can have potentially detrimental effects
when disposed of improperly.
The flexography industry has been evaluating and adopting alterna-
tives to the conventional ink formulations in an effort to find cleaner
.and safer materials for printing images. The industry's efforts in this
area have included evaluating waterborne and UV-cured inks, as well
as press modifications and add-on controls. Adopting these technolo-
gies can reduce the potential for pollution, eliminate or reduce air
emissions, and prevent the generation of hazardous wastes and other .
discharges. There are technical and environmental advantages and dis-
advantages associated with each of these technologies, however. These
advantages and disadvantages might affect product quality, production
efficiency, and energy usage, or involve the transfer of pollution from
one medium to another, transfer of waste streams, retraining facility
personnel, and modification or replacement of existing equipment.
The Design for the Environment (DfE) Flexography Project is a unique
voluntary(effort between the flexographic printing industry and the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that seeks to provide
information about the advantages and disadvantages associated with
solvent, waterborne, and UV-cured flexographic ink technologies. The
project will assess the performance, costs, environmental and human
.Recycled/Recyclable
)printed on paper that contains at least 20 percent postconsumer fiber.
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health risks/ and pollution prevention effects associ-
ated with these technologies. DfE's goal in working
with flexographic printers is to help them make
more informed choices now and in the future by eas-
ing the search for and evaluation of cleaner process-
es, products, and technologies.
How DM the DIE DfE ^ workms &
-a n - ~* printing industry in 1992,
Printing Project when the Printing Industries of
Get Started? America (PIAJ requested EPA's
assistance in evaluating envi-
ronmental claims for products. This effort ultimately
grew into projects aimed at preventing pollution in
three sectors of the industry: lithography, screen
printing, and flexography. Each project addresses a
different area of concern within the printing indus-
try, For lithography the focus is on blanket washes;
for screen printing the focus is on screen reclama-
tion; and for flexography the project partners chose
to look at the types of inks used. DfE flexography
partners include the California Film Extruders and
Converters Association (CFECA), the Flexible
Packaging Association (FPA), the Flexographic
Technical Association (FTA), the Industrial
Technology Institute (ITI), the National Association
of Printing Ink Manufacturers (NAPIM), the Plastic
Bag Association (PBA), RadTech International, N.A.,
the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), the Tag and Label Manufacturers Institute,
Inc. (TLMI), the University of Tennessee, Western
Michigan University, and individual printers and
suppliers.
What IS thfi
nĞE
UIC
Project?
T*16 DJEE flexography project has
t*1*66 key activity areas: techni-
Cfll sKai^B8t implementation
tools, and outreach activities.
Technical Studies
The DfE Flexography Project is focusing its efforts on
developing- specific risk, performance, cost, pollution
prevention, and process requirement information on
conventional and alternative ink technologies in
order to help flexographic printers make more
informed decisions about the ink technologies that
they use in their facilities.
The project is examining the environmental and
human health risks of solvent-based, waterborne, and
UV-curable ink technologies. The project is collecting
information on hazards and environmental releases
(i.e., releases to air, water, or land), energy consump-
tion, and solid and hazardous wastes associated with
the use of each technology. With this information,
the project will assess the risks to human health and
the environment posed by each of these flexographic
ink technologies.
The performance of each ink technology will be
evaluated in two ways: 1) by a laboratory under
controlled conditions; and 2) by printers under real-
world conditions of production. The information
collected in the performance demonstration will be
used to develop cost data for each ink technology. In
addition, the DfE Flexography Project will identify
workplace practice changes, pollution prevention
options, and other steps that printers can implement
to better utilize each ink technology.
Information on the comparative risk, performance,
cost, and pollution prevention opportunities associat-
ed with these ink technologies will be included'in
the DfE Flexography Project's full technical report,
the Flexographic Inks Cleaner Technologies
Substitutes Assessment (CTSA). The draft CTSA is
scheduled to be released for comment in 1996.
Implementation Tools
In an effort to, encourage pollution prevention in the
flexography sector of the printing industry, the DfE
Flexography Project will create a variety of technical
assistance tools for flexographic printers. For exam-
ple, plans are in place to develop computer software
that can help flexographic printers assess the prof-
itability of pollution prevention investments using
total cost assessment techniques. DfE is also plan-
ning to conduct pilot workshops for flexographic
printers on how to use the software.
Outreach Activities
The project will create different informational materi-
als based on the CTSA. The project partners will pro-
duce a simple, concise brochure to explain to printers
the results of the technical work. A series of case
studies also will be developed to help flexographic
printers sort through some of the different factors
that can make one ink technology a more attractive
option than another. These and other products will be
available on the Internet, making the information
developed by the DfE Flexography Project easily
accessible to printers and the general public.
How Can I Get More Information?
To learn more about the Flexography Project or
EPA's Design for the Environment Program, contact:
EPA's Pollution Prevention Information
Clearinghouse (PPIC)
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency
401 M Street, S.W. (3404)
Washington, DC 20460
Tel: 202 260-1023
Fax: 202 260-0178
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