Skin contact with fluorine

Air-line respirators and SCBA units can also be used to enter atmospheres contaminated with fluorine and carbon monoxide. However, full hoods of inert materials such as Teflon or KelF must be used to avoid skin contact with fluorine these materials can also be used to protect the rest of the body. 

Basically, we must not permit the cryogenic fluids and their vapors to contact any part of the body. The eyes and face are particularly vulnerable. Accordingly, all operations must be conducted with adequate eye and face protection. All personnel who work with low-temperature systems should wear safety glasses at all times. Further, where there is a possibility of face contact with cold vapors or liquid, a full face shield or perhaps a face shield and hood should be worn. Care must be taken not to permit rising vapors from lighter-than-air gases to enter the shield. As noted in the previous section, only inert hoods such as those made of Teflon or KelF should be worn to avoid skin contact with fluorine. 

Skin contact Victims of skin contact with fluorine should receive a drenching shower of water for 15 minutes with clothing removed as rapidly as possible while the victim is in the shower. For bums of less than 2 in (13 cm ) or bums... 

Skin Exposure Victims of skin contact with fluorine should receive a drenching shower of water for 15 minutes with clothing removed as rapidly as possible while the victim is in the shower. For burns of less than 2 in. or burns involving the face, 2.5 o calcium gluconate gel (2.5 g calcium gluconate USP to 100 ml KY-Jelly prepared by a pharmacist) should then be rubbed onto the affected area continuously for 1 hours or until further medical care is available. Rubber gloves should be worn by those initially applying the gel. 

DOT CLASSIFICATION 8 Label Corrosive SAFETY PROFILE Poison by inhalation. Moderately toxic by ingestion. A severe eye, skin, and mucous membrane irritant. Corrosive to body tissues. Flammable by chemical reaction. Explosive reaction with chlorine dioxide + chlorine, sodium, urea + heat. Reacts to form explosive products with carbamates, 3 -methyl-2-nitroben2anilide (product explodes on contact with air). Ignites on contact with fluorine. Reacts violently with moisture, CIO3, hydroxyl-amine, magnesium oxide, nitrobenzene, phosphorus(III) oxide, K. To fight fire, use CO2, dry chemical. Incompatible with aluminum, chlorine dioxide, chlorine. 

Burns. Skin bums resulting from contact with pure fluorine gas are comparable to thermal bums and differ considerably from those produced by hydrogen fluoride (114). Fluorine bums heal much more rapidly than hydrofluoric acid bums. 

Caution Phenylsulfur trifluoride and by-products (e.g., hydrogen fluoride from hydrolysis) are toxic, and all manipulations should be carried out in a good hood. Silva difluoride is a powerful oxidative fluorinating agent and reacts vigorously with many organic materials. These reagents should not be allowed to come in contact with the skin. 

Fluorine at ordinary temp, is a greenish-yellow gas when viewed in layers a metre thick the colour is paler and more yellow than that of chlorine. The liquid gas is canary-yellow the solid is pale yellow or white. Moissan s gas has an intensely irritating smell said to recall the odour of hypochlorous acid or of nitrogen peroxide. Even a small trace of gas in the atm. acts quickly on the eyes and the mucous membranes and, in contact with the skin, it causes severe burns, and rapidly destroys the tissues. If but a slight amount is present, its smell is not... 

The vapor irritates the eyes and respiratory system. The liquid burns the eyes and quickly penetrates the skin to cause deep-seated burns. Assumed to cause severe burning and damage if taken by mouth. There is no reported toxic effect due to the presence of fluorine, as in the case of highly toxic fluoroacetic acid. Avoid breathing vapor. Prevent contact with skin and eyes.1... 

SAFETY PROFILE A highly corrosive irritant to the eyes, skin, and mucous membranes. Mildly toxic by inhalation, Explosive reaction with alcohols + hydrogen cyanide, potassium permanganate, sodium (with aqueous HCl), tetraselenium tetranitride. Ignition on contact with aluminum-titanium alloys (with HCl vapor), fluorine, hexa-lithium disilicide, metal acetylides or carbides (e.g., cesium acetylide, rubidium ace-tylide). Violent reaction with 1,1-difluoro-ethylene. Vigorous reaction with aluminum, chlorine + dinitroanilines (evolves gas). Potentially dangerous reaction with sulfuric acid releases HCl gas. Adsorption of the acid onto silicon dioxide is exothermic. See also HYDROGEN CHLORIDE (AEROSOL) and HYDROCHLORIC ACID. 

SAFETY PROFILE An inhalation hazard. Mildly toxic by an unspecified route. An experimental teratogen. Experimental reproductive effects. A skin and eye irritant. Flammable in the form of dust when exposed to flame. The powdered metal may ignite on contact with air or oxidants (e.g., bromine pentafluoride, bromine, chlorine trifluoride, potassium perchlorate, potassium dichromate, nitryl fluoride, fluorine, oxygen difluoride, iodine pentafluoride, hydrogen sulfide, sodium peroxide, lead(IV) oxide). 

Several volcanic volatile species are harmful on contact with the skin, if taken into the lungs, or ingested (Williams-Jones and Rymer, 2000). In particular, sulfur species (in both gaseous and aerosol form) can affect respiratory and cardiovascular health in humans, fluorine can contaminate pasture, leading to poisoning of grazing animals, and catastrophic releases of volcanic CO2 have resulted in several disasters in recent times. 

It should also be kept in mind that some inorganic (e. g. C0F3) and organic fluorinated compounds (e.g. pyridrne-HF, NEtj-lHF, DAST) can hydrolyze on contact with skin and body fluids, liberating hydrofluoric acid with the same adverse consequences. 

Caution. Although the toxicity of the phosphoryl fluorohalides has not been investigated in detail, precautions similar to those suggested for the handling of volatile phosphorus-fluorine compounds should be taken. These preparations should be performed only in a well-ventilated hood, and contact with the skin should be avoided. Because the compounds hydrolyze easily, they are vesicants like hydrogen fluoride. 

Caution. For a description of the apparatus and precautions required when withdrawing fluorine from a cylinder, see procedure for xenon difluoride. Arsenic pentafluoride is very toxic. It hydrolyzes easily and therefore is a blistering agent as is hydrogen fluoride. Care must be taken to avoid breathing in and contact with the skin. 

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