PFAS are organic per- and polyfluorinated chemicals whose properties are valuable in many technical applications. At the same time, their extreme persistence poses a challenge for the environment, human health and industry. PFAS-free silicone solutions open up new possibilities for hoses and profiles.
What are PFAS?
PFAS are organic per- and polyfluorinated chemicals. They can offer high thermal stability and repel water, grease and dirt.
Why are alternatives being sought?
PFAS break down only very slowly in the environment. Planned European regulation is also increasing the pressure on companies to act.
What role does silicone play?
Silicone is temperature-resistant, flexible even at low temperatures and highly versatile. These properties can make it an important basis for PFAS-free alternatives.
Where are PFAS-free solutions relevant?
They are relevant, among other areas, in the food and beverage industries, provided that food-contact compliance, temperature, pressure and connection technology are taken into account.
Can PFAS be replaced on a like-for-like basis?
Not in every case. Suitability must always be assessed based on the medium, temperature, pressure, applicable standards, available installation space and required service life.
In this context, PFAS-free means that the product has been designed without per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. For industrial applications, however, this statement alone is not sufficient. What matters is whether the solution is suitable for the specific application: the medium, temperature, pressure, standards, food contact and required service life must all be assessed.
PFAS-free design is therefore not simply a marketing claim, but part of a development and validation process.
Silnova makes targeted use of silicone’s properties and combines them with other materials and processes. This results in PFAS-free solutions for hoses and lines that can be evaluated as potential substitutes for PFAS-containing products in many applications. These include applications in food technology, food-compliant designs and special hybrid hose solutions for higher pressure requirements.
PFAS are organic per- and polyfluorinated chemicals. They are used, among other reasons, because they can offer high thermal stability and repel water, grease and dirt. These properties make them attractive for many technical applications, but are also central to the concerns surrounding them.
PFAS break down only very slowly in the environment. They can enter the environment during manufacture, through the use of PFAS-containing products, or via waste and water pathways. Once released, they remain detectable for long periods; some PFAS can also accumulate in organisms and along the food chain. This makes PFAS not only a materials issue for companies, but also a regulatory, sustainability and procurement issue.
Regulators are increasingly addressing PFAS at an early stage in the supply chain. Planned restrictions are intended to cover not only the use of specific products, but also their manufacture, placing on the market and downstream applications. The EU is pursuing a broad group-based approach to PFAS. For many industries, this means that companies still relying heavily on fluorinated materials should assess early whether technically viable alternatives are available.
Fluorinated materials can offer significant technical advantages, including high temperature and chemical resistance. These very properties, however, are also linked to their problematic persistence. Direct substitution is therefore not always straightforward and requires time for development, testing and approval.
At EU level, the PFAS restriction proposal under REACH is particularly relevant. It was submitted by authorities from Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and Norway and takes a group-based approach covering around 10,000 PFAS substances. Restrictions on the manufacture, placing on the market and use of PFAS are being assessed.
For companies, this means that pressure to act may arise even before the broad restriction is finalized. Businesses using PFAS-containing materials should assess early whether application-specific PFAS-free alternatives are technically feasible and which tests, approvals and standards will be required.
PFAS-containing materials often deliver a valuable combination of properties: they may offer temperature and chemical resistance, durability and repellency toward certain media. Replacing this combination is demanding, especially when several requirements must be met at the same time.
For hoses and profiles, simply being “PFAS-free” is therefore not enough. The specific application is decisive: Which media will come into contact with the component? What temperatures will it be exposed to? What pressure loads must it withstand? Is there contact with food? Are particular standards or approvals required? PFAS-free solutions must therefore be developed and tested for the intended application.
Such solutions are particularly demanding for hoses, lines and connection solutions. In food technology and the beverage industry, materials must function reliably, comply with food-contact requirements, withstand temperature fluctuations and, depending on the application, also withstand pressure loads.
Silicone is attractive for many applications because it is temperature-resistant, flexible, remains flexible at low temperatures and is highly versatile. In hoses, seals and connection solutions, silicone can provide an important basis for PFAS-free alternatives when its material properties match the application.
Silnova harnesses these properties of silicone and combines them with other materials and manufacturing processes. This makes it possible to develop products that achieve comparable performance to PFAS-containing solutions in certain applications. Technical assessment for the specific use case remains essential, because not every PFAS-containing solution can be replaced on a like-for-like basis.
Yes. PFAS-free hose solutions can be particularly relevant in the food and beverage industries. In addition to being PFAS-free, key requirements include food-contact compliance, cleanability, temperature resistance, pressure resistance and reliable connection technology.
Silnova offers PFAS-free products as potential substitutes in the area of hoses and profiles and is developing suitable connection solutions for existing hybrid hose concepts. This enables companies to assess whether PFAS-containing solutions in certain applications can be replaced by silicone or hybrid hose solutions, for example in the beverage industry.
For PFAS-free hoses and profiles, the material alone does not determine suitability. What matters is the interaction of medium, temperature, pressure, standards, installation conditions and connection technology. In food and beverage applications, food-contact-compliant materials and the applicable regulatory requirements are also essential.
Silnova takes these requirements into account when developing silicone and hybrid hose solutions.
Companies should not wait until a specific restriction is about to take effect. Planned European regulation may already affect the viability of continuing to use PFAS-containing materials. Businesses using fluorinated components in sensitive applications generally need time for material assessment, technical approval, prototypes, testing and validation.
Acting early can reduce risks in the supply chain, development and customer communication. Particularly in food processing, the beverage industry and other regulated sectors, it makes sense to evaluate PFAS-free alternatives early together with a specialist development partner.
Silnova develops tailored silicone solutions and works on PFAS-free alternatives for hoses, profiles and suitable connection solutions. The approach is not based on blanket claims, but on the specific application: medium, temperature, pressure, standards, available space, connection and required service life.
The development process is application-specific: analyze the existing PFAS-containing solution, define the requirements, assess a silicone or hybrid hose solution, coordinate the connection technology and validate technical suitability under operating conditions. This helps create a suitable alternative without losing sight of the application’s technical requirements.
The application is decisive. The fact that a solution is PFAS-free does not by itself demonstrate that it is suitable for the particular medium, temperature, pressure and required standards.
The product has been designed without per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. For industrial applications, it must also be assessed whether the material, medium, temperature, pressure, standards and required service life are compatible.
PFAS are extremely persistent, break down only slowly in the environment and can be released through manufacture and use as well as through waste and water pathways.
Silicone can provide an important basis for PFAS-free alternatives in certain applications. However, it is not a universal like-for-like substitute; technical suitability must be validated for the specific application.
Food-contact compliance, cleanability, temperature resistance, pressure resistance, reliable connection technology and the applicable regulatory requirements are especially important.
As early as possible. Material assessment, prototypes, technical approvals, testing and validation take time, and planned European regulation may already create pressure to act.
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