Scotchgard is a 3M brand of products, a stain and

durable water repellent Durable water repellent, or DWR, is a coating added to fabrics at the factory to make them water-resistant (''hydrophobic''). Most factory-applied treatments are fluoropolymer based; these applications are quite thin and not always effective. Du ...

applied to

fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not th ...

, furniture, and

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester hav ...

s to protect them from stains. Scotchgard products typically rely on

organofluorine Organofluorine chemistry describes the chemistry of the organofluorines, organic compounds that contain the carbon–fluorine bond. Organofluorine compounds find diverse applications ranging from oil and water repellents to pharmaceuticals, ref ...

chemicals as the main active ingredient along with

petroleum distillate Petrochemicals (sometimes abbreviated as petchems) are the chemical products obtained from petroleum by refining. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewable sou ...

solvents.

Development of the formula

The original formula for Scotchgard was discovered accidentally in 1952 by 3M chemists

Patsy Sherman Patsy O’Connell Sherman (September 15, 1930– February 11, 2008) was an American chemist and co-inventor of Scotchgard, a 3M brand of products, a stain repellent and durable water repellent. Early life Sherman was born in Minneapolis, M ...

and Samuel Smith. Sales began in 1956, and in 1973 the two chemists received a

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

for the formula. 3M reformulated Scotchgard and since June 2003 has replaced PFOS with perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS). PFBS has a much shorter

half-life Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable at ...

in people than PFOS (a little over one month vs. 5.4 years). 3M now states that Scotchgard utilizes a proprietary fluorinated urethane.

Environmental concerns

During 1999, the

United States Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it ...

(EPA) began an investigation into the class of chemicals used in Scotchgard, after receiving information on the global distribution and toxicity of

perfluorooctane sulfonate Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) (conjugate base perfluorooctanesulfonate) is a chemical compound having an eight- carbon fluorocarbon chain and a sulfonic acid functional group and thus a perfluorosulfonic acid. It is an anthropogenic (man-m ...

(PFOS), the "key ingredient"Kellyn S. Bett
"Perfluoroalkyl Acids: What Is the Evidence Telling Us?"
''Environmental Health Perspectives'' Volume 115, Number 5, May 2007. Accessed October 25, 2008. of Scotchgard. The compound

perfluorooctanesulfonamide Perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA) is a synthetic organofluorine compound. It is a fluorocarbon derivative and a perfluorinated compound, having an eight-carbon chain and a terminal sulfonamide functional group. PFOSA, a persistent organic pollut ...

(PFOSA), a PFOS precursor, was an ingredient and also has been described as the "key ingredient" of Scotchgard. Under US EPA pressure, in May 2000, 3M announced the phaseout of the production of

PFOA Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA; conjugate base perfluorooctanoate; also known colloquially as C8, for its 8 carbon chain structure) is a perfluorinated carboxylic acid produced and used worldwide as an industrial surfactant in chemical processes a ...

, PFOS, and PFOS-related products.3M
"PFOS-PFOA Information: What is 3M Doing?"
Accessed October 25, 2008. In May 2009, PFOS was determined to be a

persistent organic pollutant Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), sometimes known as "forever chemicals", are organic compounds that are resistant to environmental degradation through chemical, biological, and photolytic processes. They are toxic chemicals that adversel ...

(POP) by the

Stockholm Convention Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is an international environmental treaty, signed on 22 May 2001 in Stockholm and effective from 17 May 2004, that aims to eliminate or restrict the production and use of persistent organic ...

. In 2018, 3M agreed to pay the state of

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

$850 million to settle a $5 billion lawsuit over drinking water contaminated by PFOA and other fluorosurfactants.

References

{{3M 3M brands Organofluorides Products introduced in 1956 Sulfonic acids

Development of the formula

Environmental concerns

See also

References