Strategic assessment of safer alternatives, irreplaceable hazards, and research gaps. Assessment completed 2026-03-23 (Phase 10A–10D) over the 1,825 compounds then in the corpus; the corpus holds 1,887 compounds, 1,287 consumer products and 959 materials as of 2026-09-07, and the headline coverage figure below is re-measured against it.
This page was originally created as a gap analysis to drive enrichment work. The gaps have now been filled. This section preserves the before/after comparison.
Coverage today (measured 2026-09-07 with the Phase 10 predicate — a safer alternative carrying tradeoffs, or a no-substitute record carrying mitigation strategies): 1,838 of 1,887 compounds are actionable (97.4%). Of the 49 that are not — 38 with no alternative recorded, 11 name-only — 48 were added to the corpus after this assessment (2026-03-24 to 2026-05-08) and have not been through it, and 1 (hq-c-org-000010, benzene) was assessed but had its block removed on 2026-09-01 because it described a flame retardant, not benzene (D-732); it now records none. The before/after figures above describe the 1,825-compound population the assessment covered; they are not restated against today's corpus.
| Phase | Scope | Compounds | Key Actions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10A | Tradeoff enrichment + packaging alternatives | 27 + 14 products/materials | Detailed tradeoffs for biocides, PFAS, heavy metals, refrigerants. Plastic→glass/stainless packaging alternatives for water bottles and food containers. Slow-leach context for PET/LDPE/PP. | DONE |
| 10B | No-substitute mitigations | 100 | Added no_substitute_reason (12 reason codes) + mitigation_strategies to microplastics, nanomaterials, radioactive isotopes, heavy metals, PFAS, controlled substances, natural toxins, phytoestrogens, class descriptors. |
DONE |
| 10C | Full tradeoff quality sweep | 1,142 | 40+ keyword regex patterns + 18 type-based fallback templates. Converted every remaining basic alternative to rich. 100% actionable coverage achieved. | DONE |
| 10D | Research frontier scoping | ~40 (across 5 domains) | 5 research scope documents for genuinely open scientific questions: PFAS regrettable substitution, microplastic dose-response, nanomaterial migration, biocide-free formulation, dental composite alternatives. | DONE |
The 23 high-risk in-product compounds that originally lacked tradeoff analysis have all been enriched. The table below shows their original gap and current status.
| Compound | Risk | Type | Original Gap | Resolution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aconitine | EXTREME | natural_toxin | No tradeoff context | 10C Type-based tradeoff added |
| Chromium(VI) | HIGH | heavy_metal | Cr(III) tradeoffs missing | 10A Cr(III) passivation tradeoffs |
| PM2.5 | HIGH | environmental | Not substitutable | 10B environmental_contaminant + mitigations |
| MIT | HIGH | biocide | Phenoxyethanol tradeoffs missing | 10A Full preservative tradeoffs |
| MCI/MI (Kathon) | HIGH | biocide | EU ban context missing | 10A EU restriction + rinse-off context |
| Glutaraldehyde | HIGH | biocide | OPA/PAA tradeoffs missing | 10A HLD alternatives with efficacy data |
| PFBS | HIGH | organic_pollutant | Regrettable substitution unknown | 10A + 10D scope |
| PFDS | HIGH | organic_pollutant | No non-fluorinated equivalent | 10B legacy_contaminant + mitigations |
| F-53B | HIGH | organic_pollutant | Replacement paradigm unclear | 10A + 10D scope |
| NEtFOSE | HIGH | organic_pollutant | DWR alternatives not documented | 10A Non-fluorinated DWR tradeoffs |
| R-717 (Ammonia) | HIGH | refrigerant | CO2/propane tradeoffs missing | 10A GWP vs toxicity tradeoffs |
| TBTO | HIGH | biocide | Antifouling alternatives missing | 10A Cu-pyrithione + silicone foul-release |
| Mercury | MOD-HIGH | heavy_metal | No consumer substitute | 10B inherent_elemental_toxicity + mitigations |
| NDMA | MOD-HIGH | organic_pollutant | Contaminant, not ingredient | 10B legacy_contaminant + mitigations |
The original 83 compounds with no known substitute have grown to 100 after Phase 10B identified 17 additional compounds (primarily PFAS) that had empty alternative lists. All 100 now carry explicit reason codes and actionable mitigation strategies.
| Category | Reason Code | Count | Example Mitigations | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microplastics | degradation_product | 11 | Wash bags, natural fiber substitution, stormwater filtration, regulatory bans on microbeads | DONE |
| Heavy metals / inorganics | inherent_elemental_toxicity | 46 | Source elimination, exposure controls, environmental remediation, biomonitoring | DONE |
| PFAS (legacy) | legacy_contaminant | 12 | GAC/IX water treatment, source elimination, ongoing monitoring | DONE |
| Controlled substances | controlled_substance | 13 | Naloxone, fentanyl test strips, MAT programs, harm reduction | DONE |
| Nanomaterials | emerging_nanomaterial | 4 | Conventional alternatives, exposure controls, periodic review | DONE |
| Radioactive | radioactive_isotope | 1 | ALARA, containment, geological disposal, dosimetry | DONE |
| Natural toxins | natural_toxin | 2 | Species identification, avoidance, food safety protocols | DONE |
| Phytoestrogens | dietary_compound | 2 | Dietary moderation, clinical guidance for at-risk populations | DONE |
| Therapeutic drugs | therapeutic_drug | 1 | Prescriber guidance, tapering protocols | DONE |
| Botanical substances | botanical_substance | 1 | Regulation, dosage control, contamination testing | DONE |
| Environmental contaminants | environmental_contaminant | 1 | Source reduction, filtration, HEPA air purification | DONE |
| Legacy contaminants (other) | legacy_contaminant | 4 | Environmental remediation, monitoring, exposure avoidance | DONE |
| Class descriptors | class_descriptor | 2 | Individual compound assessment, disclosure requirements | DONE |
802 of 959 materials (83.6%) are rated HIGH or VERY HIGH risk. The critical material-product-compound chains identified in the original analysis have all been addressed through Phase 10A enrichment.
| Material | Risk | Original Gap | Resolution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architectural Latex Paint | HIGH | No tradeoffs for paint preservatives | 10A MIT/MCI tradeoffs enriched |
| Cooling Tower Biocides | HIGH | 3 compounds, 0 tradeoff data | 10A Glutaraldehyde, MIT, MCI all enriched |
| Stain-Resistant PFAS Finishes | VERY HIGH | DWR alternatives not documented | 10A Non-fluorinated DWR tradeoffs |
| Marine Antifouling Paint | VERY HIGH | Cu-pyrithione not documented | 10A TBTO alternatives enriched |
| Pressure-Treated Wood (CCA) | HIGH | ACQ tradeoffs missing | 10A Cr(VI) passivation alternatives |
| PET Water Bottles | MODERATE | No packaging alternatives | 10A Glass/stainless with migration data |
| PET / LDPE / PP (materials) | MODERATE | No glass alternative data | 10A Borosilicate food-grade alternatives |
Five genuinely open scientific questions where the database should surface uncertainty rather than false certainty. Full research scope documents define the question, methodology, expected outcomes, and database actions each conclusion would trigger.
| Domain | Question | Method | Timeline | Scope Doc |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PFAS | Are short-chain PFAS (GenX, PFBS, 6:2 FTS) actually safer, or regrettable substitutions? | CompTox + PBPK modeling | 6 weeks | View → |
| Microplastics | At what particle size/dose are microplastics toxicologically significant for humans? | BMD modeling + exposure assessment | 9 weeks | View → |
| Nanomaterials | Do n-HAp, nanoclay, nano-Pt migrate from consumer products at concerning levels? | Fick's diffusion + Monte Carlo | 7 weeks | View → |
| Biocides | Can isothiazolinone-free formulations maintain shelf life across all product categories? | Challenge testing + QRA | 7 weeks | View → |
| Dental | Do Ormocer/giomer composites actually reduce Bis-GMA monomer leaching vs traditional composites? | Salivary simulation + meta-analysis | 6 weeks | View → |
no_substitute_reason (12 reason codes) + mitigation_strategies applied to 100 compounds. Turns absence into information.