Researchers from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) found that liquid crystal monomers, the chemicals used in all kinds of products (smartphones, flatscreen TVs, laptop screens, and solar panels), are potentially toxic to animals, humans, and the environment. The paper is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
According to Professor John Giesy, Canada Research Chair in Environmental Toxicology at USask, says, “These chemicals are semi-liquid and can get into the environment at any time during manufacturing and recycling, and they are vaporized during burning. Now we also know that these chemicals are being released by-products just by using them.” We don't know yet whether this a problem, but we do know that people are being exposed, and these chemicals have the potential to cause adverse effects," said Giesy.
Giesy and his team analyst 362 commonly used liquid crystal monomers that came from 10 different industries. They examined each sample for potential toxicity. The researchers also did further research on the toxicity of monomers that are commonly used in smartphones. What they found is that the monomers used in smartphones were potentially dangerous to animals and the environment. Then they gathered 53 dust samples from seven different buildings in China. Almost half of the samples contained liquid crystal monomers.
"Ours is the first paper to list all of the liquid crystal monomers in use and assess their potential to be released and cause toxic effects," said Giesy. "We looked at over 300 different chemicals and found that nearly 100 have significant potential to cause toxicity. There are currently no standards for quantifying these chemicals, and no regulatory standards. We are at ground zero."