An environmental fate and safety assessment for a low molecular weight polyacrylate detergent additive

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Abstract
Polycarboxylates are added to home laundry detergents to aid in the production of the detergent and also in the cleaning process. Given the level of use of polycarboxylates for this application, it is important to consider their environmental fate and ecotoxicity. This paper presents new and detailed information on the fate of one of the common polycarboxylates, sodium polyacrylate, under realistic use conditions. Novel techniques employing radiolabelled materials will be described to follow the fate of the various components of the polymer's molecular weight distribution. From these and ecotoxicity data, we have been able to develop a safety assessment for this important detergent component.