ACMA releases updated UEF Standard for composite manufacturing processes

 

The American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA, Arlington, Va., U.S.) released the fifth edition of the UEF “Emission Factors for Open Molding and Other Composite Processes,” which is available for purchase online in ACMA's Education Hub.

First introduced in 2004, the UEF Standard allowed the EPA to establish maximum achievable control technology standards for composite open molding operations based on process and material changes instead of add-on control. In addition to recognition by the EPA, the UEF standard has been accepted by every permitting authority in the U.S.

According to ACMA, the updated fifth edition of this resource includes new and improved tools for estimating emissions of styrene, methylstyrene and methyl methacrylate from composites manufacturing operations using thermosetting unsaturated polyester and vinyl ester resins and gel coats. The 2019 update includes new emission estimation tools for cast polymer manufacturing, as well as many clarifications, explanations and other improvements for estimating emissions from open molding, compound manufacturing and compression molding operations.

The document is an American National Standard developed by ACMA through a consensus standards process promulgated by the American National Standards Institute.

“As our industry continues to explore ways to improve safety and effectively comply with regulations, composites manufacturers can use the UEF Standard to cost-effectively prepare emission estimates for reporting to state emission inventories, EPA's TRI database, and for other purposes. The UEF Standard is an important tool for manufacturers to plan production while ensuring that permitted emission limits are not surpassed," says Tom Dobbins, ACMA president. "Without this vital product, many composites manufacturers would find they need to conduct expensive and unpredictable source tests, requiring burdensome measures to capture all emissions to a single sample point.”