Styrofoam’s Chemistry Becoming Less Hazardous, Gradually

Dow Chemical—manufacturer of Styrofoam, the dominant brand of extruded polystyrene (XPS)—is working to clean up this popular foam insulation on two fronts:

replacing the brominated flame retardant HBCD (hexabromocyclododecane) with a less-toxic alternative replacing the high-global-warming-potential hydrofluorocarbon blowing agent HFC-134a with a fourth-generation chemical that has almost no contribution to global warming

A safer flame retardant

According to Greg Bergtold, business advocacy director at Dow Chemical, the company is moving forward with the phaseout of HBCD, which is listed as a persistent organic pollutant (POP) by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.