However, in the United States and Asia, PBDEs are still in widespread use as flame retardants. 60,000 tons of PBDEs are manufactured worldwide every year. Due to its molecular structure, TBBA releases fewer toxic gases in case of a fire, but it is still only a half-hearted alternative. Hardly any gases are released since the substance is tightly integrated into the plastic. To be able to release the flame retardant easily in case of a fire and enhance the effect of the bromine, the substance is normally combined with Antimony trioxide.
Antimony trioxide is accepted to be carcinogenic.
This requires an individually developed recipe for each variety of plastic used'. This explains why most of the larger manufacturers have removed halogenated flame retardants from their PC, monitor and keyboard housings while keeping TBBA in the motherboards. Additionally, it is also still possible to encounter PBDEs even in high quality products since components are bought from across the globe and a manufacturer cannot always be certain about the substances he fits into his PCs. It has been shown many times that substances which do not naturally occur in the body of animals but have a similar structure to hormones can cause considerable damage especially in their reproductive organs'. The sea snails in the North Sea, for example, have been frequently observed to undergo a sex change from male to female, and in Spitzbergen scientist come across more and more hermaphroditic polar bear cubs.