Today's Aerosols Do Not Damage the Ozone Layer
Aerosols made in Europe today do not damage the ozone layer: the CFCs that destroyed it disappeared from them under the Montreal Protocol, and current propellants (LPG, DME, CO₂ and nitrogen) do not affect it. Their real impact lies in emissions of volatile organic compounds and in the container, which is recyclable metal and goes into metal packaging recycling once empty.
What to answer when asked whether your aerosol damages the ozone layer
Not any more. Until the 1970s and 1980s many aerosols used chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as propellants, and those gases destroy stratospheric ozone. The Montreal Protocol, adopted in 1987, required them to be phased out, and the UN Ozone Secretariat counts the rapid and complete phase-out of CFCs in aerosols among the treaty's most recognised achievements.
Everyday aerosols replaced CFCs with hydrocarbons (LPG, a blend of butane and propane), with DME or with compressed gases such as CO₂ and nitrogen. None of them depletes the ozone layer. The idea that "aerosols destroy the ozone layer" describes a product that stopped being made decades ago.
If a customer or a distributor asks, the answer is in section 3 of your aerosol's safety data sheet, which names the propellant: in an Ilerspray aerosol it will be LPG, DME or CO₂. Show it rather than promise, and if they ask in writing, send the whole sheet, which a professional customer should hold in any case. And do not put "CFC-free" on the label as a selling point: every aerosol on sale meets it, so it does not set yours apart.
Where an Aerosol's Environmental Impact Lies Today
The remaining impact has two sources: what is released when spraying, and the container. Hydrocarbons, DME and many solvents are volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which do not affect stratospheric ozone but contribute to ground-level ozone and smog.
| Propellant | Depletes ozone layer | Is a VOC | Flammable |
|---|---|---|---|
| LPG (butane, propane) | No | Yes | Yes |
| DME | No | Yes | Yes |
| CO₂ | No | No | No |
| Nitrogen | No | No | No |
The choice of propellant is the main lever for cutting VOCs. A compressed gas adds no VOCs, although it does not suit every formula, because its pressure falls as the container empties.
Is an Aerosol Can Recyclable?
Yes. An aerosol can is made of aluminium or tinplate, and once empty it goes into metal packaging recycling, alongside drink and food cans. How it is collected depends on each country's packaging scheme, so check the rule in every market where you sell. At the sorting plant, tinplate is separated with magnets and aluminium with eddy currents.
Recycling the container starts with emptying it completely. An aerosol that still holds product or gas must not be pierced, crushed or burned; if you cannot empty it, check with your local council or recycling centre how to dispose of it.
If you sell under your own brand, that instruction belongs on your label: keep a line in the design saying that the can goes in empty to the collection that applies in each market and must not be pierced or burned, even when it seems empty.
💡 Technical tip: if you are designing an aerosol with recycling in mind, choose a valve and actuator the user can empty completely, and avoid labels that will not separate from the metal at the plant.
What Is PCR Aluminium?
It is post-consumer recycled aluminium: metal recovered from packaging and products that have already been through the consumer, sorted and remelted. It differs from pre-consumer recycled metal, which is factory offcuts and scrap that never reached the market.
Aluminium does not lose its properties when recycled, so a can with PCR content withstands the same pressure and fills the same way as one made of primary aluminium. The advantage is energy: according to the International Aluminium Institute, producing primary aluminium took about 186 gigajoules per tonne in 2019, against 8.3 for recycled aluminium, a saving of 95.5 %.
- Energy, primary aluminium (2019)
- 186 GJ per tonne
- Energy, recycled aluminium (2019)
- 8.3 GJ per tonne
- Energy saved by recycling
- 95.5 %
Anyone who wants to claim PCR content on their container should ask the supplier for certification of the post-consumer origin and the actual percentage; without that traceability, the figure will not hold up in an audit. If you want cans with recycled content, we check it with our aluminium can supplier for your project; today we cannot guarantee a percentage.
For a lower-impact aerosol, the first decision is the propellant: Ilerspray fills with CO₂, LPG or DME, and an aerosol contract manufacturing project tests whether your formula can take the compressed gas or needs a liquefied one.
