What's the difference between MMA and EMA?

[Carley-Jones]

Methyl methacrylate (MMA) and ethyl methacrylate?
I've been reading about the dangers of MMA to the health. So I took a look on my acrylic liquid and it has ethyl methacrylate in it, the only difference I see is the 'M'. I'm very cautious now after reading and would not want to put my health at risk when dealing with chemicals in acrylic liquid on a daily basis...

 

[shelldavis]

Ema is a safe product to use! MMA is what they use to make false teeth with & has a molecule small enough to penetrate the nail plate & adhere to the nail bed? Hence that it lasts extremely well but is very damaging to the nail? It's banned in America. Ema is completely safe to use

 

[paigemcdonagh]

I can tell you the difference in their chemical compounds haha.

Talents of a forensic science uni student

 

[mum]

Ema is a safe product to use! MMA is what they use to make false teeth with & has a molecule small enough to penetrate the nail plate & adhere to the nail bed? Hence that it lasts extremely well but is very damaging to the nail? It's banned in America. Ema is completely safe to use

I've never heard this before (adhere to the nail bed). Where did you hear/read this? I'd be interested to know

To Carley, on paper the only difference is the M but there's a big difference in the 2 monomers. EMA is fine and there are lots of threads with lots of info on hear if you want to know more

 

[lores]

You are right to be cautious both MMA and EMA are potentially dangerous chemicals and for this reason they should both be handled with care and the correct PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) should be used whilst handling them.

I don't think we should say EMA is completely safe, however we should rather say it has been tested and proved to be the better chemical when compared to MMA to produce a nail enhancement which; performs well, is esthetically pleasing and is less likely to discomfort/allergic reaction to our clients.

As with any job handling chemicals we need to be safe and sensible about how we use them and never try to mix brands or stray from recommended ratios as it is the uncured product (residual monomer) which is harmful to ours and our clients longer term respiratory/ skin health.

I am no expert, but reputable product companies are. And they have experts to make sure the risk to professionals is kept to a minimum. The best thing you can do is to contact the product supplier or product manufacturer of your EMA and they will provide you with a material safety data and handling sheet which will help you to understand how to store and work with your product in the safest way.

HTH x