The European Union has recently updated its list of standards for demonstrating compliance with the requirements for nickel under Annex XVII of REACH. The revised list takes effect immediately.
In September 2020, the European Committee for Standardization (Comité Européen de Normalisation, CEN) published EN 12472:2020 ‘Method for the simulation of accelerated wear and corrosion for the detection of nickel release from coated items’. This method is used prior to the detection of nickel release from coated articles that come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin (SafeGuardS 156/20).
In April 2021, the European Commission published on its website (EC website) the latest list of standards for demonstrating presumption of conformity with nickel falling under entry 27 to Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH).
EN 12472:2020 replaces the previous version, EN 12472:2005+A1:2009, as the method for the simulation of accelerated wear and corrosion for the detection of nickel release from coated items.
The announcement does not indicate an effective date but can be considered as immediately binding in April 2021.
Highlights of the latest list of standards for nickel under entry 27 to Annex XVII of REACH are summarized in Table 1.
| European Commission Website, April 20, 2021 Titles and references of standards to be used as the test methods for demonstrating the conformity of articles under entry 27 of Annex XVII of REACH | ||
|---|---|---|
| European standardization organization | Standard/Title | Superseded standard |
| CEN | EN 1811:2011+A1:2015 Reference test method for release of nickel from all post assemblies which are inserted into pierced parts of the human body and articles intended to come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin | EN 1811:2011 |
| CEN | EN 12472:2020 Method for the simulation of accelerated wear and corrosion for the detection of nickel release from coated items | EN 12472:2005+A1:2009 |
| CEN | EN 16128:2015 Ophthalmic optics – Reference method for the testing of spectacle frames and sunglasses for nickel release | EN 16128:2011 |
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