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New MMA Testing Kit Available
OPI makes it easier to find out whether your acrylics contain MMA with a salon kit.
by NAILS staff
August 1, 19981 min to read
Now there’s an expensive way to find out. Chemists at OPI Products have come up with an MMA Testing Kit that gives almost instantaneous results. The kit, which will cost $24.95, contains crystals in a glass jar, a special solvent, a dropper, and an informational brochure with color chart. “The procedure is simple: Place one droppers worth of the liquid monomer you’re testing into the jar. Swirl it around then dispose of the liquid into a jar of acrylic powder (also provided). Then pour a small amount of the special solvent onto the crystals. The liquid will turn into one of a range of green to blue shades. A light yellow-green shade means no MMA is present; blue means there is MMA. (Each kit provides one test.) “Before this kit, tests were expensive and time-consuming, so very few were conducted,” comments Eric Schwartz, COO of OPI. “This test compares very well with the more expensive lab tests, and we think it will uncover a significant amount of MMA usage.” Schwartz hopes to encourage state boards to give the kits to their salon inspectors; nail technicians are also expected to purchase the kit. The MMA Testing Kit will be available August 1.
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