Release of Melamine and Formaldehyde from Melamine-Formaldehyde Plastic Kitchenware

Abstract

The release of melamine and formaldehyde from kitchenware made of melamine resins is still a matter of great concern. To investigate the migration and release behavior of the monomers from melamine-based food contact materials into food simulants and food stuffs, cooking spoons were tested under so-called hot plate conditions at 100 °C. Release conditions using the real hot plate conditions with 3% acetic acid were compared with conditions in a conventional migration oven and with a release to deionized water. Furthermore, the kinetics of the release were studied using Arrhenius plots giving an activation energy for the release of melamine of 120 kJ/mol. Finally, a correlation between quality of the resins, specifically the kind of bridges between the monomers, and the release of melamine, was confirmed by CP/MAS 13C-NMR measurements of the melamine kitchenware. Obviously, the ratio of methylene bridges and dimethylene ether bridges connecting the melamine monomers during the curing process can be directly correlated with the amount of the monomers released into food.

Endocrine Disruptors in Baby Formulas: A Literature Review

“…Melamine Melamine (2,4,6-triamino-1,3,5-triazine) is a nitrogen-rich industrial chemical produced in high volumes (Wu et al, 2016). Products made of melamine-formaldehyde plastic can also be found in food as a result of use in materials, including box coatings, paper, cardboard, and adhesives (Ebner et al, 2020). It is illegally used in food or feed products to increase the content of the false protein (Rajpoot et al, 2020).…”

Flexible SERS substrate of silver nanoparticles on cotton swabs for rapid in situ detection of melamine

“…Considering its potential toxicity, the Codex Alimentarius Commission has set limits for powdered infant formula (1 mg L À1 ) and other foods and animal feed (2.5 mg L À1 ). [3][4][5] Recently, some conventional technologies, such as highperformance liquid chromatography (HPLC), 6,7 gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) 8,9 and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 10,11 have been employed for the detection of melamine; however, these methods usually require expensive instruments, and lengthy sample preparation procedures are needed, mainly due to the analyte extraction steps. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has attracted much attention due to its high sensitivity, rapid results, unique spectroscopic ngerprint, and nondestructive analysis for molecule sensing, and has emerged as an up-and-coming technique for chemical and biosensing applications.…”

“…Considering its potential toxicity, the Codex Alimentarius Commission has set limits for powdered infant formula (1 mg L −1 ) and other foods and animal feed (2.5 mg L −1 ). 3–5 …”

Determination of migrated formaldehyde from kitchenware using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

“…This practice makes some of the finished products risk of releasing chemicals which are used during the synthesis, one of them is formaldehyde, which may diffuse into the food that are served or stored in these type of kitchenware. There are several studies highlighting the fact that this migration happens at acidic pH and at certain temperatures (Tyan et al, 2009;European Food Safety Authority, 2010;Ebner et al,2020). plastic material and overall migration limit (OML) of 60 mg/kg of total constituent of released food or simulant, and specific migration limits (SML) for migration of formaldehyde into foods of 15 mg/kg food the can be equivalent to 2.5 mg/dm 2 (European Union, 2011).…”