Fatal

The effects of pollution can be direct, such as toxic emissions providing a fatal dose of toxicant to fish, animal life, and even human beings. The effects also can be indirect. Toxic materials which are nonbiodegradable, such as waste from the manufacture of insecticides and pesticides, if released to the environment, are absorbed by bacteria and enter the food chain. These compounds can remain in the environment for long periods of time, slowly being concentrated at each stage in the food chain until ultimately they prove fatal, generally to predators at the top of the food chain such as fish or birds. 

The safety triangle shows that there are many orders of magnitude more unsafe acts than LTIs and fatalities. A combination of unsafe acts often results in a fatality. Addressing safety in industry should begin with the base of the triangle trying to eliminate the unsafe acts. This is simple to do, in theory, since most of the unsafe acts arise from carelessness or failure to follow procedures. In practice, reducing the number of unsafe acts requires personal commitment and safety awareness. 

The most common contaminants in produced gas are carbon dioxide (COj) and hydrogen sulphide (HjS). Both can combine with free water to cause corrosion and H2S is extremely toxic even in very small amounts (less than 0.01% volume can be fatal if inhaled). Because of the equipment required, extraction is performed onshore whenever possible, and providing gas is dehydrated, most pipeline corrosion problems can be avoided. However, if third party pipelines are used it may be necessary to perform some extraction on site prior to evacuation to meet pipeline owner specifications. Extraction of CO2 and H2S is normally performed by absorption in contact towers like those used for dehydration, though other solvents are used instead of glycol. 

A fatal accident and some other disasters, which were caused by small cracks, lead to a more strict consideration of the security of these steam drums. Parallel to these the economical pressure, due to the globalisation of the today s industry, lead to the increase of the pressure and the rotation speed of the paper production machines for a higher output of the production, which means, that all safety aspects from the design and the material will be exploited totally. On the other hand cast iron is also not a ductile and comfortable material, like the most steels for the pressure equipment. 

Queisser H J 1998 Defects in semiconductors some fatal, some vital Science 281 945... 

Arsenic(III) oxide is slightly soluble in water, giving a solution with a sweetish taste—but as little as 0.1 g can be a fatal dose (The antidote is freshly-precipitated iron(III) hydroxide.) The solution has an acid reaction to litmus, due to the formation of arsenic(III) acid ... 

It is very poisonous, 50 mg constituting an approximate fatal dose. Exposure to white phosphorus should not exceed 0.1 mg/ms (8-hour time-weighted average - 40-hour work week). White phosphorus should be kept under water, as it is dangerously reactive in air, and it should be handled with forceps, as contact with the skin may cause severe burns. 

Chlorine is a respiratory irritant. The gas irritates the mucus membranes and the liquid burns the skin. As little as 3.5 ppm can be detected as an odor, and 1000 ppm is likely to be fatal after a few deep breaths. In fact, chlorine was used as a war gas in 1915. 

Methanol is a colorless liquid boiling at 65°C and is miscible with water m all proportions It is poisonous drinking as little as 30 mL has been fatal Smaller amounts can produce blindness... 

Tests with animals have revealed that dioxin is one of the most toxic substances known Toward mice it IS about 2000 times more toxic than strychnine and about 150 000 times more toxic than sodium cyanide Fortunately however available evidence in dicates that humans are far more resistant to dioxin than are test animals and so far there have been no human fatalities directly attributable to dioxin The most prominent short term symptom seen so far has been a severe skin disorder known as chloracne Yet to be determined is the answer to the question of... 

A small amount of acrolein may be fatal if swallowed. It produces bums of the mouth, throat, esophagus, and stomach. Signs and symptoms of poisoning may include severe pain in the mouth, throat, chest, and abdomen nausea vomiting, which may contain blood diarrhea weakness and dizziness and coUapse and coma (99). 

Acrolein is highly toxic by skin absorption. Brief contact may result in the absorption of harmful and possibly fatal amounts of material. Skin contact causes severe local irritation and chemical bums. Poly(vinyl chloride) coated protective gloves should be used (99). 

Mild exposure to HF via inhalation can irritate the nose, throat, and respiratory system. The onset of symptoms may be delayed for several hours. Severe exposure via inhalation can cause nose and throat bums, lung inflammation, and pulmonary edema, and can also result in other systemic effects including hypocalcemia (depletion of body calcium levels), which if not promptly treated can be fatal. Permissible air concentrations are (42) OSHA PEL, 3 ppm (2.0 mg/m ) as E OSHA STEL, 6 ppm (5.2 mg/m ) as E and ACGIH TLV, 3 ppm (2.6 mg/m ) as E. Ingestion can cause severe mouth, throat, and stomach bums, and maybe fatal. Hypocalcemia is possible even if exposure consists of small amounts or dilute solutions of HE. 

Both Hquid HE and the vapor can cause severe skin bums which may not be immediately painful or visible. HE can penetrate skin and attack underlying tissues, and large (over 160 cm ) bums may cause hypocalcemia and other systemic effects which may be fatal. Even very dilute solutions may cause bums. Both Hquid and vapor can cause irritation to the eyes, corneal bums, and conjunctivitis. 

Lithium ion is commonly ingested at dosages of 0.5 g/d of lithium carbonate for treatment of bipolar disorders. However, ingestion of higher concentrations (5 g/d of LiCl) can be fatal. As of this writing, lithium ion has not been related to industrial disease. However, lithium hydroxide, either dHectly or formed by hydrolysis of other salts, can cause caustic bums, and skin contact with lithium haHdes can result in skin dehydration. Organolithium compounds are often pyrophoric and requHe special handling (53). 

Methanol is not classified as carcinogenic, but can be acutely toxic if ingested 100—250 mL may be fatal or result in blindness. The principal physiological effect is acidosis resulting from oxidation of methanol to formic acid. Methanol is a general irritant to the skin and mucous membranes. Prolonged skin contact with methanol vapor or Hquid can cause dermatitis. Methanol vapor can cause eye and respiratory tract irritation, nausea, headaches, and dizziness. 

Dietary Copper. Analytical data indicate that many diets contain less than the RDA for copper (109). Excessive copper has been reported to be fatal for oral dose levels of copper sulfate of 200 mg/kg body weight for a child and 50 mg/kg for adults. 

Fig. 2. Frequency of fatalities owing to human-caused events (—) and those caused by nucleai leactoi accidents (-) togethei with proposed nuclear...

Lithium peroxide is a strong oxidizer and can promote combustion when in contact with combustible materials. It is a powerful irritant to skin, eyes, and mucous membranes (2) protective clothing should be worn when handling lithium peroxide. The LD q has not been deterrnined, and there is no designated threshold limit value (TLV). However, 5 g of many lithium compounds can be fatal. 

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