Teflon is what I've been using, was what was sent to my with my oxygen fill whip, and yes, avoid any bits of anything getting loose inside any o2 fitting.
While I think bits of teflon tape our our least concern in terms of sources of plastic pollution, I do think the general awareness of such things is good as the bigger issue is becoming potentially catastrophic. The most disturbing quote I read in such an article was that there is now thought to be more dissolved plastic in the ocean water column, by weight, than plankton
. not sure where I read it and just hope it's not true.
I've also recently read about the accumulation of some 50 odd years of plastic forming an island in the center of the north pacific gyre the size of texas, and more recently a claim that the swirling plastic soup surrounding it is 3 times the size of the united states. My understanding of it is that they North pacific Gyre is a confluence of downwelling currents, leading everything that floats to concentrate at the center and at the surface, exoosed to UV radiation. Plastic photodegrades, dissolving into microscopic particles into the water. read on here if interested:
Great Pacific Garbage Patch - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Quote: (Originally Posted by
Scubascooby)
I don't like using ptfe at all but it's about the only thing that will stop Swagelock fittings from leaking.
I have heard that ptfe does not break down at all in the environment, it just gets ground into smaller pieces producing this:
BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Warning on plastic's toxic threat
Also, when burned it produces very poisonous gas.