Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
associated health risk to both children and adults. Microwave heating for
short durations does not degrade PC (Ehlert et al., 2008), but heating PC
containers in contact with food should still be avoided. When tested with
food simulant, some of the baby bottles leached out BPA even after 169
washes (Brede et al., 2003), suggesting possible generation of the monomer
by hydrolysis (Howdeshell et al., 2003). Weathered plastic, as expected,
tendstoproduceBPAatanincreased rate(Takao etal.,1999), butincreased
leaching from PC bottles into the contents has not been observed.
Table 7.3
Examples of BPA Extraction by Different Liquids in
Contact with Baby Bottles
Extractant Leaching
levels (ng/ml)
Temperature
(°C)
Time
(min)
References
Water
0.59 and 0.75
95
30
Sun et al. (2000)
0.2
100
0.5
D'Antuono et al.
(2001)
0.23
100
60
Food
simulant
8.4 ± 1.2 (after
51 washes)
100
60
Brede et al.
(2003)
6.7 ± 1.2 (after
169 washes)
Water
0.8
37
1440
River water 4.8
Seawater
11
Water
0.52-2.58
100
30
Lateef (2011)
a
This study was on polycarbonate plastic tubing.
A second important source of BPA is the consumption of canned food where
BPA may leach out from the epoxy liners into the contents. Canned foods
contain low levels of BPA. A recent analysis of 43 canned beverages in
Belgium (Geens et al., 2010) found 1.01 ng/ml (range 0.02-8.10 ng/ml) of
BPA; beverages from non-plastic packaging showed less than 0.02 ng/ml of
