Check out Safety Emporium for your N95, N99, and face shield needs.
From: Secretary ACS DCHAS <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] CHAS Tweets and Chemical Safety headlines (11 articles)
Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2013 07:57:50 -0500
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: D011663E-C8E3-4610-AE67-BB9FDBCC012F**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
**At_Symbol_Here**ACSDCHAS and **At_Symbol_Here**LabSustain tweets and Chemical Safety Headlines
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
Tweets available on our ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety (DCHAS) Facebook Page
Tagged Article summaries are available at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
SciencePunk Twitter: is the 580 year half life of DNA a solid rule or can you coax extra life out of it? What's shelf life of DNA in optimal conditions? 23 hours ago retweeted by acsdchas
acsdchas C&EN SafetyZone blog: Friday chemical safety round up http://t.co/dW7eq5KvVq
labsustain RT **At_Symbol_Here**nytimesscience: Dot Earth Blog: ?To Those Influencing Environmental Policy But Opposed to Nuclear Power? http://t.co/atBmYSZgq6 8 hours ago
acsdchas J Chem Ed: How Multimedia and Molecular Visualization Change the Landscape of Chem Ed Research http://t.co/AyJKQuKMz8 http://t.co/XRGtuF3oP5
labsustain ES&T: Retention and Remobilization of Stabilized Silver Nanoparticles in an Loamy Sand Soil http://t.co/dIP6UsYwTq http://t.co/rnk10yk6rh
acsdchas "HazMat crews called to NC State's campus" http://t.co/AadHQwLLkI
CHMMNews Chemical leak at DuPont Fayetteville Works sends employees to the hospital ? Fayetteville Observer http://t.co/BEjcOh1SLw #HazMat
Table of Contents (11 articles)
BROKEN THERMOMETER BRINGS HAZMAT TEAM
Tags: us_MA, public, release, response, mercury
HAZMAT SPILL CLOSES INTERSTATE 84 FOR MILES IN EASTERN OR
Tags: us_OR, transportation, release, injury, other_chemical
UPDATE: LEAK CONTAINED AT DUPONT PLANT IN BLADEN COUNTY
Tags: us_NC, industrial, release, injury, methylene_chloride
LAWSUITS: LOVE CANAL STILL OOZES 35 YEARS LATER
Tags: us_NY, public, release, injury, waste
BOILER EXPLOSION SHUTS DOWN LINCOLN MILL; CAUSE UNDER INVESTIGATION ? PENOBSCOT ? BANGOR DAILY NEWS ? BDN MAINE
Tags: us_ME, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL PLANTS BRING DANGERS, AS WELL AS JOBS
Tags: us_LA, public, follow-up, environmental
DIAZOMETHANE WITHOUT TEARS. OR EXPLOSIONS.. IN THE PIPELINE:
Tags: laboratory, explosion, environmental, other_chemical
1 STUDENT TAKEN TO HOSPITAL AFTER HAZMAT INCIDENT AT SU
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, release, injury, corrosives
THE COST OF EPA'S CHEMICAL REMOVAL
Tags: us_OR, industrial, release, environmental, acrylonitrile
ALLAFRICA.COM: ZIMBABWE: EXPERTS SPEAK ON FUEL FIRE
Tags: Zimbabwe, transportation, follow-up, environmental, ethanol, gasoline
EXPLODING FRIDGE REVEALS MARIJUANA GROWING OPERATION IN SAN DIEGO
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, response, drugs, flammables
---------------------------------------------
BROKEN THERMOMETER BRINGS HAZMAT TEAM
http://www.newburyportnews.com/local/x1909757371/Broken-thermometer-brings-Hazmat-team
Tags: us_MA, public, release, response, mercury
NEWBURYPORT ? A broken wall thermometer forced the closure of Fruit Street yesterday for several hours to allow a Hazmat team to collect and dispose of a small amount of mercury that escaped from the ornamental hanging piece, according to a Newburyport fire official.
Newburyport fire Lt. Richard Hamilton said the wall thermometer, stored in the basement, was damaged when a homeowner broke it while moving other items. A small amount of mercury escaped, prompting the evacuation of the house. The exact amount was unknown at press time.
Two adults and a dog were forced to leave the house during the clean-up effort. Hamilton called the spill a Tier 1 response, meaning the deployment of six emergency responders. While larger communities have their own Hazmat team, Newburyport is part of a regional exchange program that merges emergency personnel from across the area. Among those responding yesterday were Amesbury fire Deputy Chief David Mather and firefighters from North Reading, Ipswich and Danvers.
Exposure to mercury, a heavy metal and common in thermometers of all sizes, can lead to serious health problems if ingested, inhaled or absorbed through the skin.
Fruit Street, which is located in the West End of Newburyport, was blocked off by a Newburyport police officer stationed on High Street.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT SPILL CLOSES INTERSTATE 84 FOR MILES IN EASTERN OR
http://www.kptv.com/story/23863210/hazmat-spill-closes-interstate-84-for-dozens-of-miles-in-eastern-or
Tags: us_OR, transportation, release, injury, other_chemical
NEAR BAKER CITY, OR (KPTV) -
Police said a semi-truck carrying toxic, hazardous materials crashed near Baker City, prompting I-84 to be closed 57 miles in both directions overnight.
Oregon State Police said the commercial truck from Lesaint Chemical Logistics in Portland was carrying 4,200 gallons of Tetramethylammonium Hydroxide.
Details of the crash, which occurred at about 12:45 a.m. Sunday, weren't immediately available. Police said the injured driver was picked up by a passing vehicle with four occupants.
Emergency responders from multiple agencies responded and an incident command staging area established away from the crash scene.
The driver and four other people were decontaminated by fire personnel. They were taken to an area hospital for assessment related to exposure to the hazardous material.
---------------------------------------------
UPDATE: LEAK CONTAINED AT DUPONT PLANT IN BLADEN COUNTY
http://www.wwaytv3.com/2013/10/31/update-leak-contained-dupont-plant-bladen-county
Tags: us_NC, industrial, release, injury, methylene_chloride
BLADEN COUNTY, NC (WWAY) -- After a leak at the DuPont Fayetteville Works Plant on Highway 87 in Bladen County, the company says no one in the community needs to take action.
According to a news release from DuPont Operations, methylene chloride leaked at the site around 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Crews were able to contain the material that's used as a coolant in the plant's manufacturing process.
Emergency manager Bobby Kinlaw said five people had to go to the hospital after the hazmat incident. Regional Public Affairs Manager Lisa Randall said one of the those employees was found unconscious. That employee was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center and then transferred to a medical facility in Chapel Hill. But, she does not know why the employee passed out nor how the person is doing at this time.
The other employees are still being at held at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center as a precaution.
OSHA considers methylene chloride to be a potential occupational carcinogen. Short-term exposures to high concentrations might cause mental confusion, lightheadedness, nausea, vomiting, and headache.
---------------------------------------------
LAWSUITS: LOVE CANAL STILL OOZES 35 YEARS LATER
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/11/02/suits-claim-love-canal-still-oozing-35-years-later/3384259/
Tags: us_NY, public, release, injury, waste
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (AP) ? Thirty-five years after Love Canal's oozing toxic waste scared away a neighborhood and became a symbol of environmental catastrophe, history could be repeating itself.
New residents, attracted by promises of cleaned-up land and affordable homes, say in lawsuits that they are being sickened by the same buried chemicals from the disaster in the Niagara Falls neighborhood in the 1970s.
"We're stuck here. We want to get out," said 34-year-old Dan Reynolds, adding that he's been plagued by mysterious rashes and other ailments since he moved into the four-bedroom home purchased a decade ago for $39,900.
His wife, Teresa, said she's had two miscarriages and numerous unexplained cysts.
"We knew it was Love Canal, that chemicals were here," she said. But when she bought the house, she said she was swayed by assurances that the waste was contained and the area was safe.
---------------------------------------------
BOILER EXPLOSION SHUTS DOWN LINCOLN MILL; CAUSE UNDER INVESTIGATION ? PENOBSCOT ? BANGOR DAILY NEWS ? BDN MAINE
http://bangordailynews.com/2013/11/02/news/penobscot/boiler-explosion-rocks-lincoln-paper-mill-forces-closure-no-injuries-reported/
Tags: us_ME, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
LINCOLN, Maine ? A smelt water explosion in a chemical recovery boiler at Lincoln Paper and Tissue LLC on Saturday shook neighborhood houses and forced the mill to shut down temporarily. No injuries were reported, officials said.
The explosion occurred at the Katahdin Avenue mill?s recovery boiler, which is used to burn or recycle leftover chemicals and materials generated by the pulping process, at about 7:23 a.m. Lincoln, Lowell and Mattawamkeag firefighters cleared the scene about 40 minutes later, said Dan Summers, Lincoln?s public safety director.
?We don?t know why it happened,? said Bill Peterson, the mill?s personnel director and spokesman, ?and we won?t know how much damage was done [to the boiler and surrounding structure] until we get a chance to get in there and look at it.?
Already located in a restricted-access area that during weekdays would have been populated by only two or three workers, the boiler will be quarantined for 24 hours to allow any potentially hazardous gases to dissipate, Peterson said. No significant environmental damage is expected.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL PLANTS BRING DANGERS, AS WELL AS JOBS
http://www.observer-reporter.com/article/20131102/NEWS01/131109886#.UnZdK5TzZIk
Tags: us_LA, public, follow-up, environmental
GEISMAR, La. ? On a Thursday morning in June, Antionette West was lying on a couch in her trailer here, not far from a row of chemical plants near the Mississippi River, when the house began to shake.
She initially thought there was an explosion at a vinyl chloride plant about a mile away, where an explosion occurred last year.
This time, she saw black smoke coming from another direction.
It was from the Williams Olefins plant, an ?ethane cracker.? It?s the same type of plant Shell is considering building in Monaca in Beaver County. It makes ethylene and propylene from natural gas.
Inside the Williams plant, three miles away, men were running for their lives. Two workers died and more than 100 were injured.
Like many plants in this town between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, the plant is expanding. Geismar sits in the middle of Louisiana?s ?chemical corridor,? a 60-mile stretch where roughly a quarter of America?s petrochemicals are processed.
---------------------------------------------
DIAZOMETHANE WITHOUT TEARS. OR EXPLOSIONS.. IN THE PIPELINE:
http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/2013/10/18/diazomethane_without_tears_or_explosions.php
Tags: laboratory, explosion, environmental, other_chemical
Here's a neat paper from Oliver Kappe's group on diazomethane flow chemistry. They're using the gas-permeable tube-in-tube technique (as pioneered by Steve Ley's group). Flow systems have been described for using diazomethane before, but this looks like a convenient lab-scale method.
Diazomethane is the perfect reagent to apply flow chemistry to. It's small, versatile, reactive, does a lot of very interesting and useful chemistry (generally quickly and in high yields). . .and it's also volatile, extremely toxic, and a really significant explosion hazard. Generating it as you use it (and reacting it quickly) is a very appealing thought. In this system, the commercial diazomethane precursor Diazald is mixed with a KOH flow in one tube, while a THF solution of the reactants flows past it on the other side of a gas-permeable membrane. Methyl ester formation, cyclopropanation, and Arndt?Eistert reactions all worked well.
Aldrich or someone should work this up into a small commercial apparatus, a bespoke diazomethane generator for general use. I think it would sell. I suggest, free of charge, the brand name "Diazoflow".
---------------------------------------------
1 STUDENT TAKEN TO HOSPITAL AFTER HAZMAT INCIDENT AT SU
http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story/1-student-taken-to-hospital-after-HazMat-incident/oScQd0DcaUCU408ji3KdBQ.cspx
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, release, injury, corrosives
Syracuse (WSYR-TV) ? Emergency crews responded to the scene of an incident at the science and technology building Friday afternoon on the Syracuse University campus ? including HazMat personnel.
According to fire officials, three students were working on a science experiment when a corrosive chemical spilled.
One student was taken to the hospital. Officials did not know the student's condition.
The building was evacuated as a precaution, according to an SU spokesperson.
The building was vented and the spokesperson said they expected to open the building around 4:30 p.m.
---------------------------------------------
THE COST OF EPA'S CHEMICAL REMOVAL
http://democratherald.com/news/local/the-cost-of-epa-s-chemical-removal/article_5fc71cb8-434a-11e3-a267-0019bb2963f4.html
Tags: us_OR, industrial, release, environmental, acrylonitrile
An Environmental Protection Agency hazardous chemical removal at a bankrupt Albany company will cost somewhere between $125,000 and $180,000 in Superfund money, said a federal worker.
?The dust hasn?t completely settled yet. It will be at least three weeks before we get any firmer figures,? said Dan Heister, EPA on-scene coordinator.
On Oct. 21, the agency removed more than 3,000 gallons acrylonitrile left behind by Absorbent Technologies at its plant on Queen Avenue S.W.
The company finalized its bankruptcy plans on Oct. 11 and left its facilities, including potentially hazardous chemicals.
Heister said the government will attempt to recover costs from the company.
---------------------------------------------
ALLAFRICA.COM: ZIMBABWE: EXPERTS SPEAK ON FUEL FIRE
http://allafrica.com/stories/201311010809.html
Tags: Zimbabwe, transportation, follow-up, environmental, ethanol, gasoline
Experts in chemical engineering have defended the country's direction on ethanol saying if the fuel tanker which exploded in the Chisumbanje horror crash had been ferrying petrol, the nation would have been facing a greater tragedy in the form of more lives and a greater damage to the environment owing to the chemical properties of gasoline.
The recent accident in Chisumbanje involving a T-35 truck carrying mourners and an ethanol tanker has ignited debate over the safety of ethanol conveyance through rural areas. Eye-witness accounts indicate that in the side swipe by the T35 truck, the diesel tank of the ethanol truck got pierced, resulting in diesel spillage and a fire which then illuminated the aluminium fuel tanker.
University of Zimbabwe-based mechanical engineering expert, Engineer Clement Shonhiwa, says the fact of the matter is that petrol, which is the alternative to ethanol, is much more dangerous due to its chemical profile.
"Petrol is much worse than ethanol. It is not stable and in any fire the risk is much higher because it is very volatile," said Eng Shonhiwa. Volatility refers to how easily a liquid becomes vapour.
---------------------------------------------
EXPLODING FRIDGE REVEALS MARIJUANA GROWING OPERATION IN SAN DIEGO
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/28/exploding-fridge-marijuana_n_3517369.html
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, response, drugs, flammables
SAN DIEGO -- Authorities say an exploding refrigerator led them to a marijuana-growing operation in San Diego.
City News Service says the fridge exploded and caused a fire Thursday afternoon at a home in the Encanto neighborhood.
It took firefighters about 30 minutes to douse the fire and there were no injuries.
However, police say authorities later discovered marijuana growing at the house and a quantity of flammable hash oil, which apparently caused the explosion.
---------------------------------------------
Previous post | Top of Page | Next post