On March 4, 2020, the Standardization Administration of the People’s Republic of China (SAC) released four mandatory national standards on VOCs in coatings, adhesives, inks and cleaning agents. These new standards would affect enterprises using these products in the electrical and electronics industry.
On July 3, 2018, the State Council of the People's Republic of China released the ‘three-year action plan to win the battle for a blue sky’, in a bid to improve air quality. The plan proposes the implementation of special volatile organic compound (VOC) remediation plans for the petrochemical, chemical, industrial coating, packaging, printing and other key VOC emitting industries. It also proposes a ban on the production and use of high VOC-containing solvent-based coatings, inks, adhesives, etc. in key areas, and the implementation of special enforcement actions for VOCs, with the aim to reduce their total emission by more than 10% in 2020 when compared to 2015.
As one of the VOC remediation plans, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and SAC have released several mandatory national standards relating to VOCs, their test methods and content limits for coatings, adhesives, inks and cleaning agents. Some of these standards also have requirements for hazardous substances other than VOCs. Coatings, adhesives, inks and cleaning agents are all high-risk VOC-containing materials commonly used in the electrical and electronics industry.
There are four mandatory national standards relating to coatings, adhesives, inks and cleaning agents used in the electrical and electronics industry. The implementation of these standards will have a significant impact on this industry.
A summary of these four new mandatory national standards are indicated in Table 1.
| Table 1. Summary of four new mandatory national standards relating to the electrical and electronics industry | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard No. | Name of the Standard | Status of the Standard | Regulated Items |
| GB 30981-2020[1] | Limit of harmful substances of industrial protective coatings | Replaces GB 30981-2014 |
|
| GB 33372-2020[2] | Limit of volatile organic compounds content in adhesive | Replaces GB/T 33372-2016 |
|
| GB 38507-2020[3] | Limits of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in printing ink | New standard |
|
| GB 38508-2020[4] | Limits for volatile organic compounds content in cleaning agents | New standard |
|
| Note: The above mandatory national standards were released on March 4, 2020. Except GB 38507-2020, which will be implemented on April 1, 2021, the other standards will become effective on December 1, 2020. | |||
SGS is committed to providing information about development in regulations for consumer products as a complimentary service. Through a global network of laboratories, SGS provides a wide range of services including physical/mechanical testing, analytical testing and consultancy work for technical and non-technical parameters applicable to a comprehensive range of consumer products. Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information.
For enquiries, please contact:
Ethan Zhang
Technical Supervisor, EET RSTS
t: (86) 574 8776 7006 ext. 6007
© SGS Group Management SA - 2020 - All rights reserved - SGS is a registered trademark of SGS Group Management SA. This is a publication of SGS, except for 3rd parties’ contents submitted or licensed for use by SGS. SGS neither endorses nor disapproves said 3rd parties contents. This publication is intended to provide technical information and shall not be considered an exhaustive treatment of any subject treated. It is strictly educational and does not replace any legal requirements or applicable regulations. It is not intended to constitute consulting or professional advice. The information contained herein is provided “as is” and SGS does not warrant that it will be error-free or will meet any particular criteria of performance or quality. Do not quote or refer any information herein without SGS’ prior written consent.
