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Previous by Date: Subject: Re: Fw: [DCHAS-L] Safety Rules Date: Thu, 9 Sep 2004 13:41:27 EDT Author: ACTSNYC**At_Symbol_Here**CS.COM |
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MR: I'll answer in the body of your e-mail: In a message dated 9/8/04 9:09:50 PM Eastern Daylight Time, mrsafetyman**At_Symbol_Here**juno.com writes: > Wow, thanks for the input. The product does have a rather low health hazard > MR: There are two types of Great Stuff Products. The first type is the Great Stuff which says on the can it is for "household use." The other spray can products are Great Stuff Gaps and Cracks, Great Stuff Window Seal, etc. And all of these are available at good hardware outlets that contractors use. Great Stuff Gaps and Cracks contains between 5 and 30% (this alone is a worry) a polymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate CAS # 9016-87-9, that contains 40-50% 4,4'methylene bisphenyl isocyanate CAS# 101-68-8 (MDI). This means that somewhere between 2% and 15% of the product is MDI with a TLV-TWA of 0.005 ppm, Recommendations for air-supplied respirators are on the MSDS because there is no cartridge approved for it without change out schedules and air monitoring. I searched and searched the Dow site and it apparently does not provide the MSDS for the household variety. But according to the National Institutes of Health National Library of Medicine's Household Product Database, the prepolymer is the primary ingredient and only 0.2-0.05% is in the form of MDI. But other countries recognize that the prepolymer is just as toxic as MDI, it just has a lower vapor pressure so exposure should be lower. In England, for example, the occupational exposure to this product would be regulated by the number of isocyanate units on the compound, not the compound to which the units are attached. In the US, if you change the structure of the compound, it is now unregulated and can be labeled without warnings or even "nontoxic" if you choose. This is nuts. But it can explain why a product that contains reactive isocyanate structures has a low toxicity rating. and it is used by three labs I know of to seal bottles as well as many contractors. I > have not heard of an incident yet until now. MR: You won't. Most people use the stuff for a while with no difficulties. It is the people who become sensitized whose lives are ruined or who die. Read about the isocyanates. They are powerful sensitizers and irritants. Some cause cancer, so the effects will not be seen immediately. > contacted Dow and they advised that the product is safe if used > correctly. MR: If you get your hazard data from the people selling the product, then I have a car I want to talk to you about. They have not had any recent litigation as of yet mentioning your incidents. MR: The workers' comp cases involve the employer, not Dow. And do you really think Dow would tell you about any lawsuits pending or settled? Why don't you provide me your snail mail address and I'll send you a long data sheet on the urethanes which mentions some of the incidents of which I am personally aware as a union rep and expert witness. > direct me to actual other data or events that are documented since > this is very enlightening to me. I inspect many facilities as a code > enforcement officer and that is how I saw the processes of corking during a fire > inspection. If i had some hard data, this would enable me to approach those i > know that perform this work. > Thanks for your assistance and input. MR: This is not a mystery--it is a well known problem. How else could the ACGIH set a 0.005 ppm TLV-TWA for MDI? They have to have a PILE of data to set a low TLV or the affected industries will sue them for restriction of trade. Ah, that's the answer to your questions. Get a copy of the ACGIH Documentation of TLVs for MDI. That will put it all in perspective for you better than my data. All the data and references are there. Monona Rossol, M.S., M.F.A., industrial hygienist Arts, Crafts & Theater Safety, Inc. and Safety Officer, United Scenic Artist's, Local 829 International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes (IATSE) 181 Thompson St., #23 New York NY 10012-2586 212/777-0062 artscraftstheatersafety.org
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