In food products, E171 is not a singular ingredient; it’s always combined with other ingredients (e.g., proteins and fats) in the food product. Digesting food is a slow process for the body compared to drinking a beverage, which passes much faster through the body. 

Lithopone was discovered in the 1870s by DuPont. It was manufactured by Krebs Pigments and Chemical Company and other companies. The material came in different seals, which varied in the content of zinc sulfide. Gold seal and Bronze seals contain 40-50% zinc sulfide, offering more hiding power and strength. Although its popularity peaked around 1920, approximately 223,352 tons were produced in 1990. It is mainly used in paints, putty, and in plastics.

The other form in which titanium dioxide is produced is as an ultrafine (nanomaterial) product. This form is selected when different properties, such as transparency and maximum ultraviolet light absorption, are needed, such as in cosmetic sunscreens.

The company was established in 1989. Its predecessor is the titanium dioxide factory, a secondary independent accounting production unit affiliated to CNNC 404. It is a high-grade rutile with an annual output of more than 10,000 tons that imported advanced foreign technology and key equipment earlier in my country. It is also a high-quality titanium dioxide supplier in my country earlier in the market. After years of development, the company now has three production bases in Jiayuguan, Gansu, Baiyin, and Maanshan, Anhui.

Applications

The company has a wide variety of products, mainly including rutile titanium dioxide R818, R838, R868, R878, covering profiles, also have anatase TiO2 A1. Soft plastics and masterbatches, flat coatings, high-gloss coatings, water-based coatings, oil-based coatings, rubber, powder coatings, papermaking and other special fields, its products have been known in the market for their excellent whiteness and brightness, good hiding power and tinting power, stable application performance, and stable product quality and supply capacity.

In a study published in 2022 in the journal Particle and Fibre Technology, researchers examined the impact of maternal exposure to titanium dioxide nanoparticles in newborn offspring mice. They found that “a chronic exposure to TiO2 NPs during pregnancy alters the respiratory activity of offspring, characterized by an abnormally elevated rate of breathing.” Breathing was also shown to be “significantly and abnormally accelerated,” and the ability for neural circuitry to effectively adjust breathing rates was impaired. The researchers concluded: “Our findings thus demonstrate that a maternal exposure to TiO2 NPs during pregnancy affects the normal development and operation of the respiratory centers in progeny.”

In a 2020 study published in the Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology, researchers conducted an in vitro experiment to analyze the effects of TiO2 nanoparticles on a human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cell line. The scientists evaluated “reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, apoptosis, cellular antioxidant response, endoplasmic reticulum stress and autophagy.” The results showed that exposure to the nanoparticles “induced ROS generation in a dose dependent manner, with values reaching up to 10 fold those of controls. Nrf2 nuclear localization and autophagy also increased in a dose dependent manner. Apoptosis increased by 4- to 10-fold compared to the control group, depending on the dose employed.” 

Fluorine Chemical, Lithopone 30% CAS No. 1345-05-7, white powder, relative density: 4.136 ~ 4.39 g / mL, insoluble in water. It is a mixture of zinc sulfide and barium sulfate. Inorganic white pigment, widely used in plastics such as polyolefin, vinyl resin, ABS resin, polystyrene, polycarbonate, nylon and polyoxymethylene, and white pigments of paints and inks. It is less effective in polyurethane and amino resins and less suitable in fluoroplastics. It is also used for coloring of rubber products, paper, varnish, tarpaulin, leather, watercolor paint, paper, enamel, and the like. Used as a binder in the production of electric beads.

≥99.0

Above 20%, it is recommended to replace 1 kg TiO2 with 1.3 kg of Lithopone 30%.  

“Unlike some other chemicals used in food, titanium dioxide has no nutritive, preservative, or food safety function—its use is purely cosmetic,” said CSPI principal scientist for additives and supplements, Thomas Galligan. “The prospect of titanium dioxide nanoparticles damaging DNA is concerning enough for us to recommend consumers avoid foods that have it.”