AMP becomes the only organic amine to gain the EPA’s VOC-exemption status
In a decision with positive consequences for the coatings industry, the U.S. EPA recently ruled that the multifunctional paint additive 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP; CAS=124-68-5) would no longer be regulated as a volatile organic compound (VOC). The EPA promptly revised its regulatory definition of VOCs under the Clean Air Act to remove AMP on the basis that this compound makes a negligible contribution to tropospheric (ground-level) ozone formation.
EPA defines a VOC as “any compound of carbon, excluding carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, carbonic acid, metallic carbides or carbonates, and ammonium carbonate, which participates in atmospheric photochemical reactions,” with the exception of chemicals that EPA has determined to have “negligible photochemical reactivity,” such as 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol. So, essentially any organic compound that has not been exempted by EPA is considered to be a VOC.