On July 17, 2023, the European Commission issued Regulation (EU) 2023/1464, amending Annex XVII of the EU REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 and adding the 77th restriction item. This restriction is to control the formaldehyde (CAS No.: 50 - 00 - 0) released from furniture, articles and the interiors of road vehicles. This amendment will enter into force on August 6, 2023, and will be implemented after August 6, 2026.

After August 6, 2026, under the specified test conditions, if the formaldehyde concentration released from an article exceeds the following limits, the article shall not be placed on the market:

(1) 0.062mg/m3 (for furniture and wooden articles);
(2) 0.080mg/m3 (for articles other than furniture and wooden articles).

These restrictions do not apply to articles used only outdoors under foreseeable conditions, articles in buildings that are used only outside the building envelope and vapor barrier and do not release formaldehyde into the indoor air, etc. in specific situations.

After August 6, 2027, under the specified test conditions, if the formaldehyde concentration in the interior of a road vehicle exceeds 0.062mg/m3, it shall not be placed on the market. This restriction does not apply to second - hand vehicles and road vehicles used only for industrial or professional purposes, unless the formaldehyde in the interior of these vehicles may be accessible to the general public under foreseeable conditions of use.

According to the national standard of the Peoples Republic of China GB/T18883 - 2022 Indoor Air Quality Standard, the formaldehyde release amount in a house within 1 hour shall not be greater than 0.08 mg/m3. In addition, according to GB50325 - 2020 Indoor Environmental Pollution Control Standard for Civil Building Engineering, different types of civil buildings have different restrictions on formaldehyde content. For example, for residences, kindergartens, hospital wards, school classrooms, etc., it shall not be greater than 0.07 mg/m3, and for office buildings, hotels, stores, etc., it shall not be greater than 0.08 mg/m3.

Panel standards for E0, E1, and ENF

The formaldehyde release amount of wood - based panels and their products is divided into three grades according to the national standard GB/T 39600 - 2021: E1 grade (≤0.124mg/m3), E0 grade (≤0.050mg/m3) and ENF grade (≤0.025mg/m3).

Although regular products can basically meet the safety limit of 0.1 mg/m3, consumers should pay more attention to the long - term exposure risk and the safety of susceptible groups. Therefore, the requirements for formaldehyde limits should be higher.

The regulations on formaldehyde limits in different countries vary depending on the length of exposure. Taking Europe as an example, although the WHO guideline value is 0.1 mg/m3, considering the chronic health effects such as cancer under long - term exposure, the European Risk Assessment Committee (RAC) recommends a more stringent 0.05 mg/m3 as the safety limit. However, after weighing the industrial cost and human health, Europe finally sets the formaldehyde limit at 0.080 mg/m3, and further reduces the limits for wood products such as furniture and the interiors of automobiles.

This is what the article introduces to you, the newly added formaldehyde restriction clause in the REACH regulation.