Cloth, bleaching

New Orleans study (13) Cotton print-cloth, bleached Direct Oct.-April 6 mo 29... 

Raw lac is first treated to remove water-soluble carbohydrates and the dye that gives lac its red color. Also removed are woody materials, insect bodies, and trash. It is further refined by either hot filtration or a solvent process. In the heat process, the dried, refined lac is filtered molten through cloth or wine screens to produce the standard grades of orange shellac. In the solvent process, lac is dissolved and refluxed in alcohol solvents, filtered to remove dirt and impurities, and concentrated by evaporation. The lac can be further decolori2ed in this process to produce very pale grades. Bleached shellac is prepared by treatment with dilute sodium hypochlorite and coalesced into slabs. 

Sometimes rather than adding color to a product, it is necessary to take color away. We bleach our clothes, our hair, and sometimes even our food. Most often chemicals react with colorful compounds to make them colorless through a process called oxidation. 

We bleach our clothes. We bleach our hair. We bleach our teeth. We bleach our skin. We bleach our food. We use bleaches to disinfect and deodorize. 

If the bleach is mixed with an acid, it can release poisonous chlorine gas. To prevent this from happening, commercial bleaches leave extra alkalies in the solution to keep the pH very high (pH 12). This small amount of extra lye in the solution, along with the caustic nature of the hypochlorite itself, is what eats away the cloth if undiluted bleach gets spilled on the clothing. 

Skin Contact Don respiratory protective masks and gloves remove victim from agent source immediately flush skin and clothes with 5% solution of sodium hypochlorite or liquid household bleach within 1 min cut and remove contaminated clothing flush contaminated skin area again with 5% sodium hypochlorite solution then wash contaminated skin area with soap and water seek medical attention immediately. Ingestion Do not induce vomiting give victim milk to drink seek medical attention immediately. 

Skin Contact Don respiratory mask and gloves remove victim from source immediately and remove contaminated clothing decontaminate the skin immediately by flushing with a 5% solution of liquid household bleach wash off with soap and water after 3-4 min to remove decon agent and protect against erythema seek medical attention immediately to prevent systemic toxicity, decontamination should be done as late as 2 or 3 h after exposure even if it increases the severity of the local reaction further cleans with soap and water. 

Skin Contact Don respiratory mask and remove contaminated clothing wash contaminated skin with copious amounts of soap and water immediately using 10% sodium carbonate solution, or 5% liquid household bleach rinse well with water to remove decontamination if local sweating and muscular symptoms occur, administer an intramuscular injection with the MARK I Kit seek medical attention immediately. 

This method of making soda ash is called the Solvay process. Discovered in 1861 by Belgian businessman Ernest Solvay (1838-1922), the Solvay process was used in the commercial production of soda ash in the 1870s, and it is still in use today. Soda ash is used in the manufacture of glass and soap. It is also used in the bleaching process for paper and cloth. 

Remove all clothing and personal effects and decontaminate with soap and water. Do not use bleach or detergents containing bleach as they may interact with agents to produce toxic decomposition products. 

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