Lead & Cadmium in Toy samples from several cities; Test methods

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To determine whether lead in vinyl consumer products represented a national problem, a representative sample of the Chicago items was purchased in a variety of U.S. cities and analyzed for lead. The U.S. cities were: Boston, MA, Boulder, CO, Chicago, IL, Los Angeles, CA, Minneapolis, MN, New Orleans, LA, New York, NY, Portland OR, San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, and Washington, D.C. The results indicate that vinyl consumer products containing hazardous lead levels are widely available throughout the United States and in at least one major Canadian city (Table 4). Not all of the items were available in every city, but Table 4 (below) shows that items originally found to contain lead in Chicago also contained lead in every city examined. Seventeen of the 19 items averaged greater than the 200 ppm standard recommended by the Consumer Product Safety Commission staff. The results also show a large variation in lead content throughout the U.S. and even in different cities within the same state. This is surprising considering that almost all of the products were purchased at national chain stores like Kmart, Wal-Mart, Target, and Toys R Us. The data suggests that a low lead or cadmium level in one city may not guarantee the safety of the same product purchased in a different store, city, state, or country.

Table 4. Lead in Vinyl Products Purchased in Various Cities

Item	Average Lead	Low	High	Total Tests	Cev	Cities Tested
	(ppm)	(ppm)	(ppm)	(n)	(%)
backpack; Minnie’s	286	132	637	9	49	Bos, Chi, LA, Min, SF
backpack; 101 Dalm.	198	97	374	19	44	Bos, Bou, Chi, LA, Mon, Min, NO, SF, DC
backpack; Barbie	417	236	627	8	33	Chi, SF, Mon, DC
barbell; 2lb vinyl	5,271	824	8,610	6	67	Chi, SF, Sea
cable; Sega Genesis	5,045	2,490	7,160	15	21	Bos, Chi, Mon, NO, NY, SF, DC
cable; Gemini video	6,803	4,250	12,600	17	30	Bos, Chi, LA, NO, NY, SF, Sea, DC
cable; Gemini phone	2,130	393	5,350	13	91	Chi, LA, NO, NY, SF, DC
cable; Philco in-ear	4,845	3,610	6,150	13	18	Bos, Chi, LA, NO, SF, Sea, DC
cable; AT&T phone	4,203	207	7,260	6	76	Bos, Chi, Sea
key ring; Disney	836	234	1,570	4	83	Chi, SF
placemat; Space Jam	244	126	426	14	41	Bou, Chi, LA, Min, Sea, DC
rain hat; Tweety	2,631	680	4,200	8	49	Bos, Chi, LA, SF
rain coat; Columbia	23,211	16,800	28,600	9	15	Bos, Chi, LA, Mon, Por, SF
shower curtain; Spr.	665	445	889	12	27	Bos, Bou, Chi, LA, Min, NO, Sea, DC
tent pole; Barbie	5,962	2,830	12,500	17	41	Bos, Bou, Chi, LA, NO, SF, Sea, DC
totebag; Tweety	679	409	1,093	4	45	Bos, Chi
toy; L. Tunes hackey	1,774	190	7,490	8	136	Bou, Chi, NO, SF, DC
toy; KFC	177	97	420	12	50	Bos Chi, LA, Sea, SF, DC
umbrella; L. Tunes	661	416	852	14	19	Bos, Chi, LA, NO, NY, SF, Sea, DC

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One item from each city was tested. Abbreviations: Cev, coefficient of variation, the standard deviation expressed as a percent of the mean; Bos, Boston, MA; Bou, Boulder, CO; Chi, Chicago, IL; LA, Los Angeles, CA; Mon; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Min, Minneapolis, MN; NO, New Orleans, LA; NY, New York, NY; Por, Portland, OR; SF, San Francisco, CA; Sea, Seattle, WA; DC, Washington, D.C.

The overall variation in lead and cadmium levels seen in the various consumer products could occur for various reasons. Since metal stabilizers are typically added at levels greater than 5,000 ppm, vinyl items containing high amounts of lead are probably stabilized with it. Items with lower amounts of lead may reflect contamination in the manufacturing process. In addition, cadmium and lead are both used in pigments that color vinyl. Items colored with these pigments could also contain high amounts of either metal. Unfortunately, vinyl always requires some sort of metal stabilizer to protect the plastic during processing due to the presence of chlorine in the polymer . This structural obligation for metal stabilizers makes the prospect of making a "clean" vinyl product doubtful.

Laboratory Methods used in Testing for Lead & Cadmium
By Joseph Di Gangi PhD

The total lead and cadmium content of all items was measured using atomic absorption spectroscopy by Stat Analysis, Chicago, Illinois AIHA proficient, NIST/NVLAP accredited. Laboratory work was supervised by Benjamin Ruth, PhD Testing was conducted blind to prevent possible bias introduced by product recognition. Sample preparation proved to be an important determinant of variation. Complete ashing of samples in a Thermolyne 48000 muffle furnace at 480C for two hours helped reduce variation though some sample heterogeneity was observed. Nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide, hydrochloric acid and methylene chloride were reagent or analytical grade. A test tube acid digestion lead preparation procedure (AOAC 5.001-3) was combined with an organic digestion using analytical grade methylene chloride (NIOSH9076). Measurements were performed using a Varian SpectrAA200 atomic absorption spectrophotometer. All appropriate laboratory QA/QC procedures regarding standard curve tolerances were followed for all samples including use of blanks and matrix spikes every 10 samples and NIST reference standards.

Acid extractability was performed using procedures developed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.⁷⁵ Studies were conducted by Stat Analysis, Chicago, Illinois. A test portion of plastic material was mixed with a 50-fold mass of 0.07 N hydrochloric acid and agitated for one hour at 37C in the dark. The material was re-extracted for two hours and then a third time for three hours. All three fractions were combined and analyzed for lead content.

Accelerated aging tests were performed using procedures developed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.⁷⁶ Studies were conducted by personnel at the Environmental Quality Institute at the University of North Carolina-Asheville, AIHA, ELLAP accredited. The project was supervised by Richard Maas, PhD, associate director of the Institute.

A weatherometer was constructed according to specifications given in ASTM G53 without the condensation features and validated by lab personnel for temperature stability and illumination.⁷⁷ Even though moisture is a significant agent in degradation of materials, dry conditions were used in these aging studies to permit observations under milder, more realistic conditions. Natural and accelerated aging can be correlated if sufficient numbers of variables are compared in both methods.⁷⁸ Ultraviolet lights identical to those used in the UVCON brand weatherometer were purchased from Atlas Electric Devices Company, Chicago, Illinois. The wavelength output in the 295-365 nm region provides excellent correlation with natural sunlight and outdoor exposure.

Samples were exposed to alternating cycles of six hours duration. The heat and light cycle was conducted at 50C under ultraviolet light illumination in the UV-A region. The alternate cycle was conducted at room temperature without illumination. Samples were tested in triplicate in a single blind design to prevent possible bias caused by product recognition among lab personnel. Samples were wiped at weekly intervals. One Pace Wipe was used to wipe each sample ten times. Wipes were digested and analyzed to yield lead and cadmium content per area wiped.

Lead and cadmium determinations were performed by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry (GFAAS) using two Thermo-Jarrel-Ash Model 11 or Model 12 spectrophometers with TJA Model 774 graphite atomizers. All appropriate laboratory QA/QC procedures regarding standard curve tolerances and standard additions were followed for all samples.

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Vinyl items purchased in Chicago area national chain stores were tested for total lead at Stat Analysis, Chicago, Illinois. Stores included Disney, Kmart, Target, Toys R Us, Uncle Dan’s, Wal-Mart, and Warner Bros. In addition to information provided by product labels, all items containing lead were verified by the laboratory as PVC plastic by the Bellstein test for chlorine. Products containing above 100 ppm lead were also tested for cadmium content. A representative sample of 19 lead-containing items was selected for purchase in other cities. Not every item was found in every city. The sample included soft vinyl of various thickness, PVC-covered cable, and rigid PVC. Toys, clothing, household items, and cables were all included in the sample. Cadmium testing was restricted to items from Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Montreal, Canada to control cost. A smaller sample of 7 products was submitted in triplicate for accelerated aging experiments as described above. The sample included soft and rigid PVC products designed for use by children. Most of the items submitted for the accelerated aging study were purchased in California.

BACK TO LEAD AND CADMIUM IN TOYS

BACK TO REPORT ON VINYL PLASTIC HAZARDS: MAIN PAGE (INTRODUCTION)

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This report Š Greenpeace 1997

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