GE Advanced Materials Is First & Only Manufacturer to Offer Boron Nitride Powders With NSF Registration for Incidental Food Contact

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — June 3, 2005 — The National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) International has designated sixteen grades of GE Advanced Materials’ boron nitride (BN) powder as acceptable for use in nonfood contact lubricants, ingredients in nonfood and incidental contact lubricants, such as greases, oils, and dry films. The move establishes GE as the only supplier of boron nitride ceramic powders that is compliant with this particular NSF certification.

Each of the sixteen GE BN grades received H-2, HX-2, and HX-1 designations under the NSF Nonfood Compounds Registration Program, which is a continuation of USDA 21 CFR 178.3570. GE’s boron nitride powders have been declared acceptable for use in the following food processing areas:

• As a lubricant where there is no possibility of food contact (H-2) – these applications are typically found on the underside of food processing equipment where food has no possibility of contact with any lubricating components or lubricating fluids from those components;

• As an ingredient in lubricants with no food contact (HX-2); and

• As an ingredient, not to exceed 40 percent by weight, in lubricants with incidental food contact (HX-1) - generally applied in equipment where food passes below lubricated areas and components of processing equipment.

“This latest development further exemplifies GE Advanced Materials’ commitment to take a leadership position in all of its core product technologies,” said Bob Marchiando, industry manager, Lubrication and Wear, GE Advanced Materials. “The company not only offers boron nitride powder with this specific NSF registration, it offers sixteen different grades that all meet the criteria.”

Lubricants must be given careful consideration, given the possibility of their coming into contact with food. Despite careful application, minor lubricant leaks into food are relatively common. Thus, food grade lubricants are essential in the production process. Lubricants possessing NSF registration are becoming increasingly attractive and growing in demand for these applications. With boron nitride’s recent NSF registration, food manufacturers now can more confidently use boron nitride as a lubricant in/on their food processing equipment. BN is a white, inorganic, chemically inert, and non-toxic powder. As a solid lubricant, it offers excellent performance at high temperatures and pressures, with low thermal expansion and an ability to provide high thermal conductivity.

Listed in NSF International’s Nonfood Compounds White Book®, the sixteen GE boron nitride ceramic powder grades are considered acceptable for use in lubricants with incidental food contact and in/as lubricants with no food contact across the food processing and packaging industries, ranging from meats to baked good and beverages. Lubricants using GE’s NSF-registered powders may also qualify for use in parts and equipment that have a potential for exposure to food such as conveyor belts, gears, and compressors. The lubricants are also used for bearings, pumps, chains, packaging machinery, and plant maintenance, mainly on equipment/machinery.

All sixteen GE grades that received the NSF registrations are available globally, and offer a range of excellent performance qualities, including:

• A low coefficient of friction measuring as low as 0.12 in graphite-like boron nitride grades;

• Thermal stability from cryogenic temperatures to heat levels reaching 1000 C in air;

• High thermal conductivity for improved heat dissipation and reduced localized overheating;

• A high load-carrying capacity that is useful under extreme pressure or vacuum;

• Low thermal expansion for minimal internal force generation in high temperature applications; and

• A white color that gives lubricating systems a cleaner appearance vs. alternative solid lubricant additives;

NSF registrations may be verified at any time via the NSF web site at http://www.nsfwhitebook.org.

Reader enquiries

GE Bayer Silicones GmbH & Co. KG
Building V7
51368 LEVERKUSEN
Germany

Robert Scheib
robert.scheib@ge.com

Tel: +49 214 306 71 37
Fax: +49 214 306 71 26
Germany
+49 214 306 71 37
robert.scheib@​ge.com
www.ge.com

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Notes for editors

About GE Advanced Materials

GE Advanced Materials (www.geadvancedmaterials.com) is a world leader in providing high-technology material solutions. Headquartered in Pittsfield, Mass., its businesses include Plastics, Silicones, Quartz, Automotive, Specialty Film & Sheet, Polymershapes, and Sealants and Adhesives.

GE (NYSE: GE) is Imagination at Work – a diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing, media content and advanced materials, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.