Additive (adhesives, paints, and plastic)

Description

In terms of polymers or paints, an additive is a chemical substance, usually in small quantities, that is added to a base material for the purpose of modifying the properties of the end product. Additives an change the performance (flexibility, UV resistance, etc.) or appearance ( color, opacity, etc.). Plastics and paints often contain around 20 additives, most of which are unlisted components considered trade secrets. As such, their toxicity to humans and the environment is often unknown. Some of the additives are weakly bound to the polymeric matrix which can lead to separation and/or degradation.

Examples of additives include:

Additive Type	Typical concentration (%)	Description	Example compounds	Comment
Accelerator
Adhesion promoter
Antioxidant	0.5-3.0	Protects against degradation, especially during processing	Also called stabilizer. Phenols, phosphite esters, some thioethers	Almost all plastics with contains some type of stabilizers.
Anti-sag agent
Anti-skin agent
Antistatic agent
Biocide
Coalescing agent
Colorant
Defoaming agent
Dispersant
Drier
Emulsifier
Filler	0-50	Also called bulking agents. they change the mechanical and optical properties, while producing a less expensive product	Talc, Chalk, Glass bead, Glass fiber, Carbon black, Carbon fiber	Most polymers contain fillers. High level protect against UV rays
Flame retardant	1-30	Used to minimize burning	Most commonly used are brominated and chlorinated paraffins	Non-chlorinated organophosphates are safer but do not work as well
Heat stabilizer	0.3-5	Minimizes degradation due to heat exposure	Formerly derivatives of lead, tin and cadmium were used. Alternatives are barium/zinc mixtures and calcium stearates	Primarily used in PVC
Inhibitor
Pigment
Plasticizer	10-70	Provide flexibility	Phthalates are most common followed by adipate esdter and citrate esters	PVCs use the most plasticizers followed by cellulose acetate
Size
Stabilizer
Thickener

Synonyms and Related Terms

additives (pl.); modifier; admixture; Additive (Deut.); additif (Fr.); aditivo (Port.)

Resources and Citations

• Monona Rossol, 'Water-Based Latex Paints'
• Theodore J. Reinhart, 'Glossary of Terms', '2019 NYCOSH webinar on paints handout, Engineered Plastics, ASM International, 1988
• ASTM, "Standard Terminology Relating to Paint, Varnish, Lacquer and Related Products", Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Section 6, Paints, Related Coatings and Aromatics, ASTM, D16, 7-Jan, Jul-96
• Matt Roberts, Don Etherington, Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: a Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC, 1982
• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000
• Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Additive (Accessed Feb. 2, 2006)
• Wikipedia: |Plastic Additives (Accessed June 2023)