The new grades, FR 3000, FR 3010, and FR 3020, are free of antimony, bromine, and chlorine, and meet the requirements of the UL 94 standard for flammability. Bayer says the new blends are easy to process and have improved hydrolytic stability and reduced volatiles during processing. According to a Bayer spokesman, Kit Newton, the new resins' primary use in the device sector would be for molding medical equipment housings. Latex A nonallergenic alternative to latex gloves will soon be available. According to Peter Jurrius, executive vice president, the gloves will be stronger and more blunt-puncture resistant than those made with latex.
Gloves made of polyurethane are nonallergenic and reportedly stronger than latex.
The film has also been approved for use in wound dressings. According to Jurrius, the gloves are alkali and acid resistant and have very low ion content. Because they are static free, the gloves can be used in cleanroom environments. In addition to causing violent allergic reactions among a small number of users, there has been growing concern about whether plastic latex gloves are a safe barrier against virus-containing fluids. A paper presented at a meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology in New Orleans described research that found one-third of tested latex gloves failed to prevent microbes from passing through the material.