Tetraacetylethylenediamine (also known as TAED) is a synthetic chemical that often comes in the form of a white powder. We use this ingredient in some of our laundry and dish products as a biodegradable activator for our oxygen-based bleaching agents.

We use TAED in our products as a catalyst to enhance the speed of the reaction between the bleach agents and soil particles on dirty clothes or dishes. This allows us to make our formulations much more concentrated, while also improving cleaning performance.

TAED has been used in cleaning products since the 1980s, however its usefulness has increased with the rise of High-Efficiency (HE) washing machines and dishwashers. These HE machines use lower temperatures and less water to clean, which can contribute to conditions for increased microbial growth inside machines. Regular use of TAED-containing detergents has been shown to help limit microbial growth inside machines to safer levels.

A safety assessment by the Human & Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA) on ingredients of European household cleaning products concluded that “TAED contained in consumer washing and dish washing products as well as the amount of DAED formed during the washing process do not cause concern to human health.”

Though TAED is a synthetic ingredient, its low environmental impacts (low bioaccumulation, low toxicity to aquatic life, and biodegradability) contribute to this ingredient meeting our criteria for use in our products.

REFERENCES

Warwick Chemicals (2014). The hygienic benefits of using TAED. Retrieved on October 12, 2021 from https://youtu.be/1NmsV6XAbuY

Shakouie, S., Salem Milani, A., Eskandarnejad, M., Rahimi, S., Froughreyhani, M., Galedar, S., & Ranjbar, E. (2016). Antimicrobial activity of tetraacetylethylenediamine-sodium perborate versus sodium hypochlorite against Enterococcus faecalis. Journal of dental research, dental clinics, dental prospects, 10(1), 43–47. https://doi.org/10.15171/joddd.2015.007

HERA. (2002) Human & Environmental Risk Assessment on ingredients of European household cleaning products: Tetraacetylethylenediamine (TAED) (CAS 10543-57-4). Retrieved on October 12, 2021 from https://www.heraproject.com/files/2-F-04-HERA%20TAED%20full%20web%20wd.pdf

National Center for Biotechnology Information (2021). PubChem Compound Summary for CID 66347, Tetraacetylethylenediamine. Retrieved October 12, 2021 from https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Tetraacetylethylenediamine.