Tritan is a

copolymer In polymer chemistry, a copolymer is a polymer derived from more than one species of monomer. The polymerization of monomers into copolymers is called copolymerization. Copolymers obtained from the copolymerization of two monomer species are some ...

offered by

Eastman Chemical Company Eastman Chemical Company is an American company primarily involved in the chemical industry. Once a subsidiary of Kodak, today it is an independent global specialty materials company that produces a broad range of advanced materials, chemicals and ...

since 2007 to replace

polycarbonate Polycarbonates (PC) are a group of thermoplastic polymers containing carbonate groups in their chemical structures. Polycarbonates used in engineering are strong, tough materials, and some grades are optically transparent. They are easily work ...

, because of health concerns about

Bisphenol A Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical compound primarily used in the manufacturing of various plastics. It is a colourless solid which is soluble in most common organic solvents, but has very poor solubility in water. BPA is produced on an industrial s ...

(BPA). Tritan is a

made from three

monomers In chemistry, a monomer ( ; ''mono-'', "one" + '' -mer'', "part") is a molecule that can react together with other monomer molecules to form a larger polymer chain or three-dimensional network in a process called polymerization. Classification M ...

dimethyl terephthalate Dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) is an organic compound with the formula C6H4(COOCH3)2. It is the diester formed from terephthalic acid and methanol. It is a white solid that melts to give a distillable colourless liquid.Richard J. Sheehan "Terepht ...

(DMT),

cyclohexanedimethanol Cyclohexanedimethanol (CHDM) is a mixture of isomeric organic compounds with formula C6H10(CH2OH)2. It is a colorless low-melting solid used in the production of polyester resins. Commercial samples consist of a mixture of cis and trans isomers. ...

(CHDM), and 2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanediol (CBDO). Tritan is made without using any BPA. In April 2008,

Nalgene Nalgene is a brand of plastic products developed originally for laboratory use, including such items as jars, bottles, test tubes, and Petri dishes, that were shatterproof and lighter than glass. The properties of plastic products make them suita ...

announced it would phase out production of its outdoor line of polycarbonate containers containing the chemical bisphenol A. Nalgene then used Tritan, because it did not contain BPA.

Health controversy

In 2011, a neurobiologist at the University of Texas, George Bittner, published an article claiming most polymers, including Tritan, contained trace amounts of Bisphenol A. Eastman Chemical Company sued, and after a jury ruled in Eastman's favor, the Court barred Bittner from making claims about Tritan’s

oestrogen Estrogen or oestrogen is a category of sex hormone responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics. There are three major endogenous estrogens that have estrogenic hormonal activ ...

ic activity.

References

Polycarbonates Commodity chemicals Plastics Thermoplastics Transparent materials {{Chem-stub