Document qk8R4Zm8XoR18NgB2y364O4B5

2965075 Evaluation of Ceramic Coatings for Cookware Background Cookware made with ceramic-based coatings has been on the marketplace for a long time. Recently introduced cookware with ceramic coatings make claims such as: * High heat resistance: pots/pans are oven safe/stovetop safe to 850F (454C) e Scratch and abrasion resistance: no more worrying over flaking, peeling or off flavors in your foods. * Superior non-stick release: surface does not breakdown or wear over time, and is healthier because you don't need added butter, fat or oils! * Dishwasher safe: easy to clean. * Environmentally-friendly As a leader in cookware coating technologies, DuPont has evaluated numerous coatings for over 20 years, including sol-gel ceramic coatings. Ceramic coatings are not new to cookware, they were first introduced in the 1980's. In fact, sol-gel technology has been used since the late 19th century. DuPont regularly evaluates the performance of cookware available in the market. One methodology is through a battery of standard tests conducted in the DuPont Test Kitchen. We conducted such an evaluation on recently introduced ceramic-based coatings. PERFORMANCE- DuPont Test Kitchen Poor Food Release While ceramic-based coatings offer good initial food release, the pans (tested at typical cooking temperatures) showed significant loss of food release after a short time period. Poor Durability Pans with ceramic coatings were put through a test meant to simulate extended kitchen use. After the test, the coating was observed through a microscope and found to be brittle and cracked. See Photo #1. TTD The miracles ofscience" fe 2965075 EVALUATION OF CERAMIC COATINGS FOR COOKWARE Staining and Poor Cleanability Items with a ceramic coating were subjected to a test, where the pan is heated to 700F (371C) (well within claimed temperature range for most ceramic based coatings) and a frozen hamburger was cooked for five minutes on each side. The pan was then immersed in water and scrubbed by hand. Photo #2 shows a comparison between the hand scrubbed "Burger" test pan and a new, unused pan. The results show the coating had poor cleanability and was prone to staining under these conditions. See Photo #2. Scratch Resistance The initial scratch resistance of the tested items with a ceramic coating was similar to a typical Teflon three coat system. However,the ceramic coating performance deteriorated quickly during an accelerated cook test. This testing revealed that a typical Teflon" branded three coat system scored a scratch rating of 7 after 100 test cycles. The ceramic coating scored a scratch rating of 5 after only 30 test cycles. (Scratch test scale: 10 = no scratches, 1 = coating completely gone) Photo #3 (magnification 50X) shows the significant staining, chipping and cracking of the ceramic coating after the accelerated cook testing. Consumer Cooking Standard Based on our Consumer Cooking Standard, a test protocol designed by DuPont to simulate consumer cooking results, the effective non-stick cooking life of a pan coated with a Teflon Classic system is at least 5 times longer than a pan with a ceramic-based coating. The effective non-stick cooking life of a pan coated with a Teflon Platinum system is at least 9 times longer than a pan with a ceramic-based coating. For specifics of the test protocol and complete test results contact your DuPont representative. *A cook cycle is a cooking protocol involving cooking a series of various foods followed by pan cleaning; which ends with the evaluation of the ease of release of a fried egg based on a standardized rating scale. 2965075 PERFORMANCE- Restaurant Evaluation DuPont submitted fry-pans with a ceramic coating to a restaurant for our standard 4-6 week restaurant evaluation. After only three days of restaurant use, the restaurant refused to continue using this cookware. In this short time, the kitchen staff noted that food was sticking to the pan while cooking and food residue stuck to the pan to the point where the pan could no longer be cleaned satisfactorily. In previous tests in a restaurant kitchen cooking environment, typical Teflon three coat systems performed well for the 4-6 week duration of the evaluation. Photo #4 shows a ceramic coated pan after 3 days (on the right) and a Teflon" coated pan after 10 days (on the left). PERFORMANCE- Independent Third Party Testing DuPont commissioned an independent testing laboratory specializing in testing and certifying the safety, performance, and quality of consumer goods to test the non-stick performance and durability of pans with a ceramic-based coating and pans coated with Teflon Classic and Teflon Platinum. The results of this testing confirmed that both Teflon coating systems offered longer lasting non stick performance and significantly better durability than ceramic coatings. To see for yourself, ask your DuPont representative for the final test report. DuPont Summary of Performance Testing on ceramic coatings e Cookware with a ceramic coating should not be considered non-stick. * The significant staining and difficulty cleaning of this cookware may disappoint consumers. * These coatings may not hold up over an extended period of time due to the brittleness and cracking that occurs with use. * Additional third party testing confirms that cookware with a ceramic coating tends to have poor abrasion resistance and poor food release. Performance testing reaffirms that Teflon branded non-stick coatings offer significantly better long term non-stick performance compared to ceramic coatings. AN ENVIRONMENTAL EVALUATION OF COATED COOKWARE- Utilizing Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) LCA takes a holistic approach to evaluate a selection of environmental impacts, or footprints, of a product throughout its entire lifetime, including raw materials production, product manufacture and distribution, consumer use and end-of-life disposal. A Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) looks at specific environmental impacts within the broader LCA. DuPont LCA and LCIA environmental evaluations are based on the global best-practices to evaluate the environmental footprint of a product and its entire supply chain, i.e. the ISO 14000 Series Standards on "Environmental Management", and take into account material and energy consumption, and environmental releases. To establish an appropriate basis, or functional-unit, for LCA, release and durability tests were conducted to determine the useful cooking life of non-stick coated cookware. Using a test protocol based on commonly used industry cooking tests for non-stick pan durability, the Teflon Classic and Teflon Platinum coated pans have a useful life respectively, of 5t0 9 times longer than the brand of ceramic coated cookware we tested. In other words, for a consumer to get the same effective non-stick use-life expected from a pan coated with a Teflon Classic or Teflon Platinum coating system, they need to buy and use from 5 to 9 pans with a ceramic-based coating. Our Life Cycle Assessment based impact evaluations suggest that useful non-stick cooking life is the key factor in identifying the coated cookware with the lowest environmental burdens for all impact categories studied, including Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Energy Use, Air Acidification, etc. Impacts from coating manufacture and coating application are minimal compared to the burdens from the manufacture of the pan's metal base and handle. Pans with poor non-stick durability such as pans with a ceramic-based coating, will tend to have larger, less sustainable, environmental footprints Summary of Environmental Evaluations For coated cookware, the longest lasting non-stick cooking life is the most environmentally sustainable option. Peer reviews of these evaluations will be completed with comments and results made publicly available upon completion. Conclusion DuPont appreciates the spirit of innovation that drives the Cookware industry. We feel that we have contributed to the success of this industry through our long history of cookware coating technology. Recently introduced cookware with ceramic-based coatings claimed to have superior non-stick performance and to be a more environmentally friendly alternative to PTFE coatings. We do not believe that these claims can be supported when subjected to rigorous scientific cooking-performance and 1SO based environmental evaluations. As has been our practice, DuPont will continue to monitor and evaluate many coating technologies to help bring new, differentiated cookware to market. However we believe that: e Current ceramic-based top-of-range cookware coatings should not be classified as non-stick, nor should they be considered to be as durable, or more durable, than Teflon branded coatings. * For coated cookware, the longest lasting non-stick cooking life is the most environmentally sustainable option. 2965075 Top of Range LCA Based Environmental Impact Evaluation Global Warming Impacts* 60.0 50.0 EquivalentsPan-life 40.0 Gas Equilvaent per Gre nhous eq. CO, kg [= Bare Shell I Handle [1 Coating (mfg) [1 Curing Bet Product Transport, Retailing, MSW Teflon Classic Ceramic Coating *Based on consumer simulated `equivalent' non-stick cooking life, i.e. "1" pan coated with Teflon Classic lasts longer than "5" pans of the brand of ceramic coated cookware we tested. Therefore, a pan coated with Teflon Classic has significantly lower global warming impact. 120.0 100.0 EquivalentsPan-life 80.0 Gas Equilvaent 60.0 per Grenhous eq. CO, kg 40.0 20.0 Top of Range LCA Based Environmental Impact Evaluation Global Warming Impacts* | Pan I Handle 3 coating (mfg) CJ curing [my Product Transport, Retailing, MSW Teflon Platinum Ceramic Coating *Based on consumer simulated `equivalent' non-stick cooking life, i.e. "1" pan coated with Teflon Platinum longer than "9" pans of the brand of ceramic coated cookware we tested. lasts Therefore, a pan coated with Teflon Platinum has significantly lower global warming impact. The miracles of science" Copyright 2008 DuPont. All rights reserved. The DuPont Oval Logo, DuPontTM, The miracles of scienceTM and Teflon are registered trademarks or trademarks of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company or its affiliates.