3M™ Novec™ Phaseout Notifications
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This page will be updated regularly with information on 3M™ Novec™ products, replacements and alternatives.
3M™ Novec™ Availability
- 3M™ Novec™ 7200 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 7300 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 7500 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 71IPA – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ FC-40 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 73DE – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 72DA – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 649 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 612 – In Stock
- 3M™ Novec™ 1230 – In Stock
Availability varies on other fluids. Contact us for more information.
BestSolv™ Fluids – Alternatives / Replacements for 3M™ Novec™
BestSolv™ fluids are drop in replacements for 3M™ Novec™ Engineered Fluids due to 3M™’s plans to phase out Novec™ chemicals by 2025. Best Technology is the exclusive distributor of BestSolv™ Solvents and Engineered Fluids.
| 3M™ Novec™ Engineered Fluid / Solvent | BestSolv™ Drop-In Replacement Fluid* |
| 3M™ Novec™ 72DA | BestSolv™ Alpha |
| 3M™ Novec™ 73DE | BestSolv™ Bravo |
| 3M™ Novec™ 71DE | BestSolv™ Delta |
| 3M™ Novec™ 72DE | BestSolv™ Echo |
| 3M™ Novec™ 71IPA | BestSolv™ Lima |
| 3M™ Novec™ 7100 3M™ Novec™ 7200 3M™ Novec™ 7300 | BestSolv™ Sierra |
| 3M™ Novec™ 71DA | BestSolv™ Theta |
| 3M™ Novec™ 612 3M™ Novec™ 649 3M™ Novec™ 1230 | BestSolv™ Zulu |
*Note: Information is provided by Best Technology, not 3M™. 3M™ does not endorse or recommend any alternative material. As such, the customer is responsible for evaluation of the material’s various properties when looking at alternatives.
Plan Your Novec™ Phase Out with BestSolv™
Best Technology serves many regulated industries including Medical Device and Aerospace and is considered in industry as a subject matter expert for surface finishing equipment and chemistries. These industries require extensive time for rigorous validation / approval of new or changes to manufacturing processes.
3M™ has not announced when each Novec™ product will stop production; therefore, time is of the essence with the voluntary 3M™ Novec™ phase out. Because of the uncertainty of 3M™ material availability, investment/lead time/supply chain of new capital equipment/technology, and cost/time involved in extensive process changes, Best Technology has laid out a 3 phase approach for now into years to come.
Immediate / Short Term Goal – a drop in replacement for the Novec™ material without requiring capital equipment or major process revalidation. As such, most of our BestSolv™ Engineered Fluids allow for drop in replacement in most applications. These solvents serve the following advantages:
- Dual sourced – Since 3M™ had such a market share in the fluid industry, most companies single sourced their HFE Novec™ fluids from 3M™. BestSolv™ fluids are dual sourced from multiple countries to allow for consistent supply chain of the fluids. This immediately shores up possible availability and supply chain uncertainty of 3M™ solvents. After the 3M™ Novec™ phase out, continued use of HFE 7100 and/or HFE 7200 neat or blends (71DE, 72DE, 72DA, 73DE, 71IPA) is subject to possible supply issues since there are only a few sources in the world which produce quality HFE7100 and HFE7200; 3M™ is the biggest producer of these fluids.
- Cost and performance – In most applications, Best Solv™ fluids perform similarly to 3M™ Novec™ fluids. Best Solv™ engineered fluids have very similar properties to 3M™ Novec™ HFE7100, HFE7200 and blends (71DE, 72DE, 72DA, 73DE, 71IPA). Comparison between fluids can be found on individual BestSolv™ pages. There are no known regulations to restrict use of these fluids in the United States. Even with similar performance, BestSolv™ fluids have significant cost advantages of up to 50%.
- No capital equipment investment – BestSolv™ fluids are drop in replacements, they can be used the equipment currently in use with 3M™ Novec™ Fluids such as vapor degreasers, immersion coolers and heat exchangers. Typical capital equipment lead times can be 12-20 weeks which push out the transition further without certainty of 3M™ Novec™ supply.
Medium Term Goal – transition to next generation chemistries with direct/drop in replacements in their current open top degreasers. The next generation chemistries are recent innovations in solvent technology in the last 3-5 years but would require extensive process validation due to their new release to regulated industries. Novec™ HFE technology is going on 20+ years. While Best Technology sells process manufacturing equipment (solvent vapor degreasers and aqueous systems), there are some intricate applications which can only be accomplished with molecules, surface tensions and other properties uniquely offered from engineered fluids. Some halogenated/fluorinated fluids will continue to be essential for many many industries for many years to come. Based on briefings of conversations within the contacts directly involved at the EPA, there are not currently any future phase out plans.
Longer Term Goal – Advancements in aqueous / water based and solvent process equipment have been underway prior to the 3M™ announcement. The investment in new capital equipment is costly (10-15+ year ROI), requires extensive testing/validation and longer establishment of new process equipment technology for medical device and aerospace manufacturing takes time. Best Technology has developed this equipment for both solvent and aqueous based chemistries. If customers consider this time of transition an opportunity for new capital equipment change, we do have an offering of process cleaning equipment solutions.
3M™ Novec™ Voluntary Phase Out Announcement
On December 20, 2022, 3M™ announced plans to exit per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) manufacturing and work to discontinue the use of the PFAS in its product portfolio by the end of 2025.
As an authorized 3M™ Engineered Fluids distributor, Best Technology remains committed to our customers throughout this transition and continues to receive 3M™ Novec™ stock. We will continue to advocate for our customers to fulfill current orders as well as secure stock for future orders.
This 3M™ announcement affects these products:
A full list of fluids can be found on page 2 of the 3M™ Novec™ replacement announcement.
We are currently working with 3M™ on the product details, impact of product supply near and long term, and how we can best serve our customers based on the 3M™ announcement.
Continuous, open conversation with our customers will ensure this transition is made as smoothly as possible. Best Technology is committed to and will work with our customers to determine specific application needs and put in place a plan to help ensure a smooth transition for your company’s manufacturing demands.
3M™ Novec™ Fluids Impacted by Phase Out
- 3M™ Novec™ Engineered Fluids
- 3M™ Novec™ 7100 Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 7200 Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 7300 Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 7500 Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 71DA Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 71DE Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™71IPA Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 7200 Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 72DA Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 72DE Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Novec™ 73DE Engineered Fluid
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ Electronic Liquids
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-40
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-43
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-70
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-72
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-770
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-3283
- 3M™ Fluorinert™ FC-3284
- 3M™ Performance Fluids.
- 3M™ Performance Fluid PF-5052
- 3M™ Performance Fluid PF-5056
- 3M™ Performance Fluid PF-5060
- 3M™ Performance Fluid PF-5058
BestSolv™ Price and Ordering
For purposes of product stewardship, Best Solv™ fluids cannot be sold directly online and are available for customers in the United States only.
Please contact our chemical sales department for a quote by clicking the “Get a Quote” button, or call 612-392-2414, ext. 2.