You are here:
Laboratory study of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination and mitigation in buildings; Part 1. Emissions from selected primary sources
Citation:
GUO, Z., X. LIU, K. A. KREBS, A. R. Stinson, J. A. Nardin, R. H. Pope, AND N. ROACHE. Laboratory study of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination and mitigation in buildings; Part 1. Emissions from selected primary sources. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-11/156, 2011.
Impact/Purpose:
EPA report
Description:
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a class of 209 organic compounds, known as congeners, with the chemical formula of C12H1O-xClx, where x is the number of chlorine atoms in the range of 1 to 10. Different mixtures of these congeners were sold under many brands and trade names worldwide, among which Aroclors marketed by Monsanto Company were the most common trade names in United States. Commercial production of PCBs started in 1929 and was banned by the U.S. Congress in 1978. The approximate PCB usage in the U.S. included 60% for closed system and heat transfer fluids (e.g., transformers, capacitors, and fluorescent light ballasts), 25% for plasticizers, 10% for hydraulic fluids and lubricants, and 5% for miscellaneous uses. PCBs were once used as plasticizers in caulking materials because of their compatibility with the base resin or binder. These caulking materials could contain up to 30% PCBs. Thus, all buildings that have expansion joints and that were built between the 1940s and the late 1970s are likely to contain PCBs in the caulking materials. In the past two decades, a series of field measurements conducted in Europe and North America has shown that PCB-containing caulk and sealant can be a significant source of PCBs in buildings.