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Polycarbonate is a durable and inexpensive plastic used in various products, including eyeglass lenses and safety eyewear. It offers excellent impact resistance, optical clarity, and UV protection. However, polycarbonate products made with BPA have raised safety concerns, leading to the phasing out of BPA-containing products.
Polycarbonate is a form of mouldable, durable, and inexpensive plastic that is used in a wide variety of consumer products. Frequently used to make eyeglass lenses, compact discs (CDs), housewares, glassware, water and baby bottles, as well as numerous industrial products. Polycarbonate is valued for its impact resistance, optical clarity and temperature tolerance. Polycarbonate was developed in the 1950s and was quickly recognized as a dynamic replacement for glass. In the 1980s, polycarbonate eyewear was introduced to consumers as a safe and convenient alternative to standard plastic or glass lenses.
Polycarbonate lenses have significant advantages over other lens shapes on the market. In addition to their excellent impact resistance, polycarbonate glasses are up to 40% thinner and a third lighter than standard plastic lenses. These properties make polycarbonate eyewear ideal for people with high prescriptions. Polycarbonate glasses, however, aren’t perfect. Due to their ability to absorb shock, lenses are soft and therefore more susceptible to scratches. To compensate for this, anti-scratch coatings have been developed which can be added to polycarbonate glazing to provide increased durability.
All safety eyewear is made from polycarbonate material as it provides the best impact resistance of any eyewear material available. Polycarbonate glasses are 10 times more resistant to breakage than plastic lenses. Polycarbonate lenses are highly recommended for children due to this safety benefit. Additionally, polycarbonate blocks 99% of UV light. This ability is an important feature, especially for children and individuals who work outdoors, as UV light is known to contribute to the development of cataracts.
While the safety features of polycarbonate for eyewear are undisputed, the use of polycarbonate in consumer products has been questioned. The polycarbonate used to make items like baby bottles, polycarbonate tumblers, and reusable water bottles contains a chemical called bisphenol-A, or BPA. In 2007, an independent group of scientists reviewed the body of available data on the safety of BPA and determined that polycarbonate products made with BPA presented a safety concern for humans. Bottle manufacturers responded quickly by phasing out products containing BPA. While there are currently no restrictions on the use of polycarbonate in glasses and bottles, the use of this material in food containers has declined. As of September 2008 the US Food and Drug Administration has resisted a ban on products made with BPA, arguing that more data on the material’s safety is needed.
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