Degrees of hazard

Long-term physical danger is more cumulative or chronic than acute or short term. Cumulative back strain caused by poor kinetic handling techniques is an example of long-term physical injury. 

Immediate chemical danger may be caused by strong acids and alkalis being poorly stored and handled, thus leading to a risk of skin contact and corrosive bums - i.e. immediate chemical injury. 

Long-term chemical danger is again chronic or cumulative - e.g. lead poisoning or exposure to asbestos fibres. The result is some form of occupation disease - i.e. long-term chemical injury. 

Immediate biological danger may be caused by the presence of contagious diseases or via genetic manipulation. The result is again some form of occupation disease or illness. 

Long-term biological danger is usually cumulative in nature, for example noise-induced occupational deafness. 

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Dow Fire and Explosion Index. The Dow Eire and Explosion Index (3) is a procedure usehil for determining the relative degree of hazard related to flammable and explosive materials. This Index form works essentially the same way as an income tax form. Penalties are provided for inventory, extended temperatures and pressures, reactivity, etc, and credits are appHed for fire protection systems, process control (qv), and material isolation. The complete procedure is capable of estimating a doUar amount for the maximum probable property damage and the business intermptionloss based on an empirical correlation provided with the Index. 

EinaHy, the penalties are factored into the original material factor to result in a fire and explosion index value. The higher this value, the higher the degree of hazard. 

The evaluation phase of industrial hygiene is the process of making measurements on some set of samples which permits a conclusion about the degrees of hazard. Before conducting an evaluation, it is necessary to make a number of choices of what and where to sample, when to sample, how long to sample, how many samples to take, what sampling and analytical methods to use, what exposure criteria to use in the analysis of the data, and how to report the results. These choices as a whole constitute the evaluation plan. The object is to find if one or more workers have an unacceptable probabiUty of being exposed in excess of some estabUshed limit. 

In the fire codes, the atmospheric boiling point is an important physical property used to classify the degree of hazardousness of a Hquid. If a mixture of Hquids is heated, it starts to bod at some temperature but continues to rise ia temperature over a boiling temperature range. Because the mixture does not have a definite boiling poiat, the NFPA fire codes define a comparable value of boiling poiat for the purposes of classifying Hquids. For petroleum mixture, it is based on the 10% poiat of a distillation performed ia accordance with ASTM D86, Standard Method of Test for Distillation of Petroleum Products. 

Toxicity is the ability to cause biological injuiy. Toxicity is a property of all materials, even salt, sugar, and water. It is related to dose and the degree of hazard associated with a material. The amount of a dose is both time and duration dependent. Dose is a function of exposure (concentration) and duration and is sometimes expressed as dose = (concentration) X duration, where n can vaiy from 1 to 4. 

The use of this system will provide a standard method of identifying the relative degree of hazard that is contained in various tanks, vessels, and pipelines. Suggested applications include ... 

Toxicity is related to dose and degree of hazard associated with a material. Dose is time- and duration-dependent, in that dose is a function of exposure (concentration) times duration. 

Training for all staff, covering both normal operation and emergency situations, is essential. The combination of measures used will depend upon the degree of hazard, and the scale and nature of the processes. For example, dust and fume control measures in the rubber industry are summarized in Table 5.19. 

Reaction Degree of hazard Reaction Degree of hazard... 

Table 4. Summary of Baalc Technologies and Data Needs to Modify the Degree of Hazard of Wastes...

Fig ure 12-1. The inoreasing degree of hazard of matter plotted against the inoreasing hazard of a prooess. (Source Shabica [2].)... 

Deactivation and D D actions can range from stabilization of multiple hazards at a single site or facilities containing chemical or radioactive contamination, or both, to routine asbestos and lead abatement in a nonindustrial structure. Strategies include programs that meet compliance objectives, protect workers, and make certain that productivity and cost-effectiveness are maintained. The content and extent of health and safety-related programs should be proportionate to the types and degrees of hazards and risks associated with specific operations. 

The PM and SS should be aware that no single eombination of PPE ean guard against all hazards beeause every worksite is different and the degree of hazards (known or unknown) may vary day by day. The PPE ensemble probably will be required to ehange as work eontinues. 

The first step on transfer of the sythesis is to evaluate the discovery route, looking particularly at overall yield and purity, as well as parameters such as cost of production (cost of starting materials, solvents, labor and overhead, and disposal of waste stream), ease of removal of impurities or catalyst from products, and the degree of hazard associated with solvents, reactants, intermediates, and products. The route used in discovery is... 

Adequate labeling information to protect customers workers advice when mode of use involves new form or degree of hazard Adequate labeling and use information either to conform to statute or to fulfill common law obligations special requirements of federal and state insecticide or pure food laws... 

Not all hazardous wastes pose the same degree of hazard when recycled. U.S. EPA believes that wastes that may be recycled in a protective manner, or that are addressed under other environmental regulations, warrant exemptions from RCRA Subtitle C. Consequently, handlers of these materials are not subject to any hazardous waste regulations. These exempt recyclable hazardous wastes are1 2 3... 

The general process hazard factor (Ft) and special process hazard factor (F2) are multiplied together to produce a unit hazard factor (F3). The Dow F EI is computed by multiplying the unit hazard factor by the MF. Table 10-2 provides the degree of hazard based on the index value. 

Table 10-2 Determining the Degree of Hazard from the Dow Fire and Explosion Index...

Rank Degree of Hazard Maximum Enthalpy of Decomposition/Reactiona (kcal/g) Possible Qualitative Interpretations of the Classifications... 

TABLE 2.11 Degree of Hazard in Relation to the Oxygen Balance (CHETAH Criterion 3) ... 

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