Is the silicone product safe and environmentally friendly?
January 17, 2019
Is the silicone product safe and environmentally friendly?
In recent years,silicone products unknowingly slowly into our lives,we adored the design of the infinite creativity and fashion, also have to admit that it really brings convenience to our lives,at this time maybe we realize that will many silicone products be toxic or is it safe? So now let's discuss a few issues.
1.what is silicone?
It is a man-made polymer, but instead of a carbon backbone like plastic, it has a backbone of silicon and oxygen. (Note that I'm using two different words here: silicone is the polymer and silicon, spelled without the “e” on the end, is an ingredient in silicone.) Silicon is an element found in silica, i.e., sand, one of the most common materials on earth. However, to make silicone, silicon is extracted from silica (it rarely exists by itself in nature) and passed through hydrocarbons to create a new polymer with an inorganic silicon-oxygen backbone and carbon-based side groups. What that means is that while the silicon might come from a relatively benign and plentiful resource like sand, the hydrocarbons in silicone come from fossil sources like petroleum and natural gas. So silicone is a kind of hybrid material.
A Little More Background on Silicone
Stacey Feeley, co-founder of Silikids, gave us some great background on the benefits of food grade silicone:
Can handle temperature extremes, transferring easily from freezer to microwave.
Flexible, durable and shatter resistant.
Petroleum-free.
Dishwasher safe.
Odor and stain resistant.
Hygienic and hypoallergenic with no open pores to harbor bacteria.
Does not fade or scratch.
2.Safety and Recyclability of Silicone
According the study explains that silicone has a good track record of safety. As for recyclability, she says “Silicone does not decompose but it is recyclable–although probably not through your city-wide recycling program. You'll probably have to drive to a specialty recycling facility – but then again, silicone is very durable so you won't have to worry about disposal for a long time”. In terms of Recyclability,it explains that silicone is not toxic to aquatic or soil organisms, it is not hazardous waste. So while it is not biodegradable, it can be recycled after a lifetime of use.
According to above opinions we can realize that the products are made of silicone materials have advantages of non-toxic and high recyclability rate,it meant that the silicone products are very safe.