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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, March 13, 2020 at 7:35:46 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (10 articles)
HOW HAZMAT SUITS PROTECT BOSTON EMS AGAINST CORONAVIRUS ‰?? LOWELL SUN
Tags: us_MA, public, discovery, environmental
INDIANA ADOPTS LAW RESTRICTING PFAS-CONTAINING FOAMS
Tags: us_IN, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
TEN YEARS AFTER THE TEXAS TECH ACCIDENT: PART I: A HISTORICAL RETROSPECTIVE
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
FOUR STUDENTS INJURED IN EXPLOSION INSIDE CHEMISTRY LAB IN ASSAM UNIVERSITY
Tags: India, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
WHO DUMPED EXPLOSIVE STUFF NEAR BANGALORE DAIRY?
Tags: India, education, follow-up, injury, waste
FDA SAYS CHEMICAL REPLACEMENTS FOR PFOA, PFOS MORE TOXIC THAN THOUGHT
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
ONE DEAD, 13 INJURED IN EXPLOSION AT BARCELONA CHEMICAL PLANT
Tags: Spain, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
MOBILE EMS RESPOND TO CHEMICAL SPILL IN PRICHARD
Tags: us_AL, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical
INDUSTRIAL CHEMIST ALESSANDRO AGOSTI SAYS QUALITY PRODUCTS COME FROM CONTROLLED, SAFE PROCESSES
Tags: Italy, laboratory, discovery, response, pharmaceutical
WHAT IS AN ALLERGY SENSITIZER, AND HOW DOES A CHEMICAL BECOME ONE?
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, discovery, injury, flammables, irritant
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HOW HAZMAT SUITS PROTECT BOSTON EMS AGAINST CORONAVIRUS ‰?? LOWELL SUN
https://www.lowellsun.com/2020/03/12/how-hazmat-suits-protect-boston-ems-against-coronavirus/
Tags: us_MA, public, discovery, environmental
To prevent coronavirus contraction and dwindling first responder resources, Boston EMS personnel will now respond to all possible COVID-19 cases in level-three Hazmat suits.
‰??For a little while, this might be the new normal for us,‰?? EMS Chief James Hooley told the Boston Herald. ‰??To reassure. people, that doesn‰??t mean there‰??s hundreds of cases if we‰??re wearing this.‰??
A level-three Hazmat suit includes a lightweight medical gown, surgical gloves and booties. More importantly, first responders will wear a face mask and an air-filtering respirator, with a splash guard to protect against coughs and sneezes.
Hooley said so far, Boston EMS has only responded to a handful of high-risk coronavirus cases, but warned that it‰??s essential that frontline medical staff protect themselves as the pandemic continues.
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INDIANA ADOPTS LAW RESTRICTING PFAS-CONTAINING FOAMS
https://chemicalwatch.com/99829/indiana-adopts-law-restricting-pfas-containing-foams
Tags: us_IN, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
Indiana has joined a growing number of US states to adopt legislation restricting the use of firefighting foams containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs).
The measure (HB 1189), signed into law on 11 March, prohibits the use for training or testing purposes of ‰??class B‰?? firefighting foam containing any intentionally added PFASs.
There is an exception, however, for testing facilities that have implemented "appropriate measures" to prevent releases to the environment.
And unlike measures in several other states, the law does not prohibit or restrict the manufacture, sale or distribution of firefighting foams containing intentionally added PFAss, nor their use in emergency firefighting or fire prevention operations.
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TEN YEARS AFTER THE TEXAS TECH ACCIDENT: PART I: A HISTORICAL RETROSPECTIVE
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.0c00027
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
A serious academic laboratory accident occurred at Texas Tech University in January of 2010. As a result of internal assessment and subsequent investigations by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), we have been working on changing the safety climate at Texas Tech University over the past decade from nearly nonexistent or one of compliance to one where there is active work and thoughtfulness on the part of the administration, faculty, staff, and students to strive for improvement. In this two-part series, we explore the Texas Tech accident from a variety of perspectives. In part I we review the accident from a historical perspective as seen through the eyes of the faculty, administrators, and investigators who were principally involved. In part II we will explore how the accident acted as a galvanizing experience for the transformation of the safety culture, with a look at the current state of academ!
ic laboratory safety at Texas Tech.
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FOUR STUDENTS INJURED IN EXPLOSION INSIDE CHEMISTRY LAB IN ASSAM UNIVERSITY
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/four-students-injured-explosion-inside-chemistry-lab-assam-university-silchar-1654582-2020-03-11
Tags: India, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
t least four students were injured in an explosion that took place inside a Chemistry laboratory in Assam University in Silchar on Wednesday. Two among the injured students have received severe injuries in the blast.
According to reports, the students of second semester, pursuing Masters in Chemistry at the university, went to the Chemistry lab to perform some experiments.
When the students were busy performing experiments in the lab, a loud blast due to a chemical explosion took place.
Four students were injured in the chemical explosion, all of whom the university authority immediately admitted to Silchar Medical College and Hospital.
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WHO DUMPED EXPLOSIVE STUFF NEAR BANGALORE DAIRY?
https://www.deccanherald.com/metrolife/metrolife-your-bond-with-bengaluru/who-dumped-explosive-stuff-near-bangalore-dairy-812436.html
Tags: India, education, follow-up, injury, waste
On Sunday, Narasimhaiah, housekeeping employee at a college hostel, was looking through a heap of garbage in Chandrappa Layout when something exploded.
The area is close to Bangalore Diary and Mico, off an arterial road connecting south Bengaluru. Police later said it was a chemical blast. Many neighbours witnessed the incident. They say the blast was loud and scary.
Narasimhaiah (52) was rushed to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital, near NIMHANS, for treatment. Metrolife visited the hospital on Monday, and found he was being treated in the ICU.
The blast site is not a regular garbage dumping spot. A heap appeared only two weeks ago after a building was demolished to make way for Metro work.
Vijaya, living in a house near the blast site, told this reporter debris from the demolished building was partly cleared, and what had been left behind had turned into a garbage dump.
‰??People started throwing waste here. We saw Narasimhaiah sifting through this debris. He had already picked up some cartons and tied them together,‰?? she says.
She then saw him pick up a large plastic bag and fill it with plastic bottles and covers. He took a stick and was poking the garbage when something exploded.
‰??The next thing I saw was that smoke was billowing. We rushed to see him lying in a pool of blood with his leg separated from his body,‰?? recalls Vijaya.
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FDA SAYS CHEMICAL REPLACEMENTS FOR PFOA, PFOS MORE TOXIC THAN THOUGHT
http://pulse.ncpolicywatch.org/2020/03/10/fda-says-chemical-replacements-for-pfoa-pfos-more-toxic-than-thought/
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
The chemical structure of 6:2 FTOH (Illustration: ChemSpider)
In 2006, when 3M and DuPont, under legal and regulatory pressure, began phasing out their production of two types of perfluorinated compounds ‰?? PFOA and PFOS ‰?? the companies had a backup plan: By reducing the number of fluorinated carbon molecules from eight to six or fewer, they could produce new chemicals that would ostensibly be safer than their longer carbon-chain counterparts.
GenX, for example, is a short-chain perfluorinated compound.
But two new FDA studies show that theory isn‰??t true. The results were recently published in peer-reviewed, independent journals Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology and Food and Chemical Toxicology The Environmental Working Group announced the results of the studies.
The compound in question, 6:2 FTOH is widespread in the environment. It is present in fast food packaging, stain- and water-resistant consumer products, fire-fighting foam ‰?? even nap mats at child-care centers.. The general population is exposed to the compound by inhaling it, such as in indoor dust, and eating food packaged in materials containing the compound.
FDA researchers found that 6:2 FTOH is toxic. It builds up in the liver and fatty tissues of rats, persisting for roughly the equivalent of a year in humans.
---------------------------------------------
ONE DEAD, 13 INJURED IN EXPLOSION AT BARCELONA CHEMICAL PLANT
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-spain-blast-barcelona/one-dead-13-injured-in-explosion-at-barcelona-chemical-plant-idUSKBN20X21G
Tags: Spain, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
BARCELONA (Reuters) - One person died and 13 others were injured in an explosion on Tuesday at a small chemical plant in Barcelona, local emergency services in Catalonia‰??s regional capital said.
There was no health risk to the residents of La Verneda neighborhood where the plant was located, said a Barcelona city government spokeswoman.
Officials were checking with the plant owners to determine what type of products exploded. Debris from the blast, including bolts, was visible on a nearby street, footage from local channel Beteve showed.
The plant is run by a firm named Proquibasa, the spokeswoman added. Proquibasa describes itself in its LinkedIN profile as one of the leading Spanish-based distributors of commodity and specialty chemicals.
---------------------------------------------
MOBILE EMS RESPOND TO CHEMICAL SPILL IN PRICHARD
https://www.al.com/news/mobile/2020/03/mobile-ems-respond-to-chemical-spill-in-prichard.html
Tags: us_AL, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical
Hazmat units were sent out to a residence on St. Stephens Road and West Clark Avenue in Prichard due to an chemical spill Tuesday afternoon.
According to the Mobile Fire-Rescue Department, the chemical spill was a result of a car accident that occurred near the residence. The chemical has been identified as tal oil, which is considered to not be dangerous.
A 56-year-old woman was transported to the hospital suffering from burn injuries. They are considered to be non-life threatening injuries.
---------------------------------------------
INDUSTRIAL CHEMIST ALESSANDRO AGOSTI SAYS QUALITY PRODUCTS COME FROM CONTROLLED, SAFE PROCESSES
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.0c00021
Tags: Italy, laboratory, discovery, response, pharmaceutical
Integrating process safety values into organic chemical manufacturing guides Alessandro Agosti‰??s work each day. He is the head of process safety and reaction scale-up at Olon, an Italy based manufacturer of pharmaceutical chemicals.
Olon‰??s chemists, engineers, and process safety experts help pharmaceutical companies bridge the gap from research and development to manufacturing. Agosti is an organic chemist by training, and his role is to determine how pharmaceutical companies can smoothly and safely transition to plant-scale production of new chemicals.
Efficiency, high-quality products, and safe manufacturing methods go together, he says. An unsafe process is wasteful and expensive, a maxim he stresses as he scales up production for client companies.
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WHAT IS AN ALLERGY SENSITIZER, AND HOW DOES A CHEMICAL BECOME ONE?
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.0c00025
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, discovery, injury, flammables, irritant
Kate McKnelly expects to finish up her PhD this summer, but she isn‰??t allowed to set foot in her laboratory at the University of California, Irvine. That‰??s because she is effectively allergic to the building.
She had been handling peptide coupling agents for years when in 2018 she started to develop a severe and potentially life-threatening reaction to three of them: HATU, HBTU, and HCTU. While HATU and HBTU were already known to cause allergic reactions, McKnelly‰??s case appears to be the first to involve HCTU as an allergy sensitizer.
‰??If you look at a chemical label and it says ‰??Flammable,‰?? then you know to be really careful. Or if it‰??s a carcinogen, then you know it can cause cancer. You have a good grasp on what those words mean,‰?? McKnelly says. ‰??Sensitizer is a more nebulous term.‰??
Sensitizers are chemicals with the potential to become allergens. It‰??s hard to predict which chemicals will be sensitizers, who is likely to be vulnerable to them, and how much exposure will induce a reaction. Consequently, working safely in a lab means handling known sensitizers and chemically similar compounds cautiously to minimize exposure.
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