Hidden hazards: The toxic truth behind car cabin safety
They are supposed to ensure our safety in car cabins. However, on a daily basis, they seriously harm us. According to scientists, substances that reduce the flammability of finishing materials in cars have a clearly negative impact on our health.
It doesn't take much imagination to understand how dangerous it could be if car seats caught fire while driving. Under unfavourable circumstances, a cigarette butt or an object left inside the car that concentrates sunlight could be enough to ignite it. Therefore, it's not surprising that manufacturers have been using substances in the passenger cabin finish for years to reduce the flammability of the materials used there. These are used, for example, in the foam filling the seats. As it turns out, they are not so benign.
An article summarizing research on the impact of such substances on daily car use was published in the Environmental Science & Technology journal. Researchers from Duke University, focusing on cars available on the American market, found that up to 99 per cent of car cabins contained tris(1-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCIPP), a flame-retardant agent considered to be a potential carcinogen.
Most cars contained additional flame-retarding agents based on organophosphorus esters, including tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), recognized in California as carcinogens. These and other flame-retarding agents are also associated with harm to the neurological and reproductive system.
Building up heat in the cabins
Research shows that in cars with seats containing TCIPP, higher concentrations of this substance were detected in the cabin air. The problem intensifies in the summer, when due to strong sunlight, the cabin, and therefore the upholstery, heats up to even 65 degrees Celsius.
In the American market, flame-retardant measures meet the standard for upholstery resistance to open flame imposed by the NHTSA, which is responsible for road safety. The regulation, created in the 1970s, is now criticized by some groups including firefighters.
According to Patrick Morrison of the International Association of Fire Fighters, the additives marginally prevent fires but cause smoke buildup in the cabin in critical situations, which is dangerous for both the victims and the rescuers.
A solution to the problem in the American market could be a revision of the regulations concerning reducing material flammability in car interiors. Perhaps a smaller amount of them would be sufficient to provide enough resistance to contact with flame while not having such a strong, negative impact on health.
