“Zero VOC’s” has become a the tipping point between products judged “good” or “bad”. This is misleading. Volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) describes a molecular relationship, not a material. There are VOC’s that are harmful to the environment because they react photochemically and contribute to smog. Additionally there are VOC’s that have no evidence or history of being deleterious to human health.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) mandate is about what happens outdoors. Indoor air pollution is not addressed by the EPA (or any other government agency). The following is a list the EPA excludes from being defined as a “harmful” VOC because (quoted directly from their intro to this list) “This includes any such organic compound other than the following, which have been determined to have negligible photochemical reactivity”… in other words, not contributing to smog.

So “Zero VOC, or VOC-free” can include the following:

  • methane
  • ethane
  • methylene chloride (dichloromethane)
  • 1,1,1-trichloroethane (methyl chloroform)
  • 1,1,2-trichloro-1,2,2-trifluoroethane (CFC-113)
  • trichlorofluoromethane (CFC-11)
  • dichlorodifluoromethane (CFC-12)
  • chlorodifluoromethane (HCFC-22)
  • trifluoromethane (HFC-23)
  • 1,2-dichloro 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethane (CFC-114)
  • chloropentafluoroethane (CFC-115)
  • 1,1,1-trifluoro 2,2-dichloroethane (HCFC-123)
  • 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a)
  • 1,1-dichloro 1-fluoroethane (HCFC-141b)
  • 1-chloro 1,1-difluoroethane (HCFC-142b)
  • 2-chloro-1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (HCFC-124)
  • pentafluoroethane (HFC-125)
  • 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134)
  • 1,1,1-trifluoroethane (HFC-143a)
  • 1,1-difluoroethane (HFC-152a)
  • parachlorobenzotrifluoride (PCBTF)
  • cyclic, branched, or linear completely methylated siloxanes
  • acetone
  • perchloroethylene (tetrachloroethylene)
  • 3,3-dichloro-1,1,1,2,2-pentafluoropropane (HCFC-225ca)
  • 1,3-dichloro-1,1,2,2,3-pentafluoropropane (HCFC-225cb)
  • 1,1,1,2,3,4,4,5,5,5-decafluoropentane (HFC 43-10mee)
  • difluoromethane (HFC-32)
  • ethylfluoride (HFC-161)
  • 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoropropane (HFC-236fa)
  • 1,1,2,2,3-pentafluoropropane (HFC-245ca)
  • 1,1,2,3,3-pentafluoropropane (HFC-245ea)
  • 1,1,1,2,3-pentafluoropropane (HFC-245eb)
  • 1,1,1,3,3-pentafluoropropane (HFC-245fa)
  • 1,1,1,2,3,3-hexafluoropropane (HFC-236ea)
  • 1,1,1,3,3-pentafluorobutane (HFC-365mfc)
  • chlorofluoromethane (HCFC-31)
  • 1-chloro-1-fluoroethane (HCFC-151a)
  • 1,2-dichloro-1,1,2-trifluoroethane (HCFC-123a)
  • 1,1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4-nonafluoro-4-methoxy-butane (C4F9OCH3 or HFE-7100)
  • 2-(difluoromethoxymethyl)-1,1,1,2,3,3,3-heptafluoropropane ((CF3)2CFCF2OCH3)
  • 1-ethoxy-1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4,4-nonafluorobutane (C4F9OC2H5 or HFE-7200)
  • 2-(ethoxydifluoromethyl)-1,1,1,2,3,3,3-heptafluoropropane ((CF3)2CFCF2OC2H5)
  • methyl acetate
  • 1,1,1,2,2,3,3-heptafluoro-3-methoxy-propane (n-C3F7OCH3 or HFE-7000)
  • 3-ethoxy-1,1,1,2,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,6-dodecafluoro-2-(trifluoromethyl) hexane (HFE-7500)
  • 1,1,1,2,3,3,3-heptafluoropropane (HFC 227ea)
  • methyl formate (HCOOCH3)
  • 1,1,1,2,2,3,4,5,5,5-decafluoro-3-methoxy-4-trifluoromethyl-pentane (HFE-7300)
  • dimethyl carbonate
  • propylene carbonate

and perfluorocarbon compounds which fall into these classes:

  1. cyclic, branched, or linear, completely fluorinated alkanes,
  2. cyclic, branched, or linear, completely fluorinated ethers with no unsaturations,
  3. cyclic, branched, or linear, completely fluorinated tertiary amines with no unsaturations, and
  4. sulfur containing perfluorocarbons with no unsaturations and with sulfur bonds only to carbon and fluorine.