Sodium Arsenite Hazard Summary Identification
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Common Name: SODIUM ARSENITE CAS Number: 7784-46-5 DOT Number: UN 2027 (Solid) RTK Substance number: 1683 UN 1686 (Solution) Date: January 1996 Revision: March 2002 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- HAZARD SUMMARY * Exposure to hazardous substances should be routinely * Sodium Arsenite can affect you when breathed in and may evaluated. This may include collecting personal and area be absorbed through the skin. air samples. You can obtain copies of sampling results * Sodium Arsenite is a CARCINOGEN and a from your employer. You have a legal right to this TERATOGEN--HANDLE WITH EXTREME CAUTION. information under OSHA 1910.1020. * Skin contact can cause irritation, burns, itching, thickened * If you think you are experiencing any work-related health skin, rash and loss of pigment. problems, see a doctor trained to recognize occupational * Contact can irritate and burn the eyes. diseases. Take this Fact Sheet with you. * Exposure can irritate the nose and throat. Long-term exposure can cause an ulcer or hole in the "bone" dividing WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS the inner nose. The following exposure limits are for inorganic Arsenic * Sodium Arsenite can cause poor appetite, a metallic or compounds (measured as Arsenic): garlic taste, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting and headache. * High or repeated exposure may damage the nerves causing OSHA: The legal airborne permissible exposure limit weakness, "pins and needles," and poor coordination in the (PEL) is 0.01 mg/m3 averaged over an 8-hour arms and legs. workshift. NIOSH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is 3 IDENTIFICATION 0.002 mg/m , which should not be exceeded Sodium Arsenite is a white or grayish-white powder. It is during any 15 minute work period for inorganic used as a pesticide, a hide preservative, an antiseptic, and in Arsenic. ACGIH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is dyeing and soaps. 3 0.01 mg/m averaged over an 8-hour workshift. REASON FOR CITATION * Sodium Arsenite is a CARCINOGEN in humans. There * Sodium Arsenite is on the Hazardous Substance List may be no safe level of exposure to a carcinogen, so all because it is regulated by OSHA and cited by ACGIH, contact should be reduced to the lowest possible level. DOT, NIOSH, NTP, DEP, IARC and EPA. * The above exposure limits are for air levels only. When * This chemical is on the Special Health Hazard Substance skin contact also occurs, you may be overexposed, even List because it is a CARCINOGEN, MUTAGEN and though air levels are less than the limits listed above. TERATOGEN. * Definitions are provided on page 5. WAYS OF REDUCING EXPOSURE HOW TO DETERMINE IF YOU ARE BEING * Enclose operations and use local exhaust ventilation at the site of chemical release. If local exhaust ventilation or EXPOSED enclosure is not used, respirators should be worn. The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers to * A regulated, marked area should be established where label chemicals in the workplace and requires public employers Sodium Arsenite is handled, used, or stored as required by to provide their employees with information and training the OSHA Standard: 29 CFR 1910.1018. concerning chemical hazards and controls. The federal OSHA * Wear protective work clothing. Hazard Communication Standard, 1910.1200, requires private * Wash thoroughly immediately after exposure to Sodium employers to provide similar training and information to their Arsenite and at the end of the workshift. employees. * Post hazard and warning information in the work area. In addition, as part of an ongoing education and training effort, communicate all information on the health and safety hazards of Sodium Arsenite to potentially exposed workers. SODIUM ARSENITE Page 2 of 6 This Fact Sheet is a summary source of information of all After suspected overexposure, repeat these tests. Also examine potential and most severe health hazards that may result from your skin periodically for abnormal growths. Skin cancer from exposure. Duration of exposure, concentration of the substance Arsenic is easily cured when detected early. and other factors will affect your susceptibility to any of the potential effects described below. Any evaluation should include a careful history of past and --------------------------------------------------------------------------- present symptoms with an exam. Medical tests that look for damage already done are not a substitute for controlling HEALTH HAZARD INFORMATION exposure. Acute Health Effects Request copies of your medical testing. You have a legal right The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. immediately or shortly after exposure to Sodium Arsenite: Conditions Made Worse By Exposure * Skin contact can cause irritation, burns, itching and a rash. * Many scientists believe that skin changes such as * Contact can irritate and burn the eyes. thickening and pigment changes make those areas more * Exposure can irritate the nose and throat causing cough likely to develop skin cancer. and/or shortness of breath. * Sodium Arsenite can cause poor appetite, a metallic or WORKPLACE CONTROLS AND PRACTICES garlic taste, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting and headache. Unless a less toxic chemical can be substituted for a hazardous Chronic Health Effects substance, ENGINEERING CONTROLS are the most The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at effective way of reducing exposure. The best protection is to some time after exposure to Sodium Arsenite and can last for enclose operations and/or provide local exhaust ventilation at months or years: the site of chemical release. Isolating operations can also reduce exposure. Using respirators or protective equipment is Cancer Hazard less effective than the controls mentioned above, but is * Sodium Arsenite is a CARCINOGEN in humans. It has sometimes necessary. been shown to cause skin and lung cancers. * Many scientists believe there is no safe level of exposure to In evaluating the controls present in your workplace, consider: a carcinogen. (1) how hazardous the substance is, (2) how much of the substance is released into the workplace and (3) whether Reproductive Hazard harmful skin or eye contact could occur. Special controls * Sodium Arsenite may be a TERATOGEN in humans since should be in place for highly toxic chemicals or when it has been shown to be a teratogen in animals. significant skin, eye, or breathing exposures are possible. Other Long-Term Effects In addition, the following controls are recommended: * Long-term exposure can cause an ulcer or hole in the * Where possible, automatically transfer Sodium Arsenite "bone" dividing the inner nose. from drums or other storage containers to process * High or repeated exposure may damage the nerves causing containers. weakness, "pins and needles," and poor coordination in the * Specific engineering controls are required for this chemical arms and legs. by OSHA. Refer to the OSHA Standard: 29 CFR * Repeated skin contact can cause thickened skin and/or color 1910.1018. changes (patchy areas of darkening and loss of pigment). Some persons develop white lines on the nails. Good WORK PRACTICES can help to reduce hazardous exposures. The following work practices are recommended: MEDICAL * Workers whose clothing has been contaminated by Sodium Medical Testing Arsenite should change into clean clothing promptly. For those with frequent or potentially high exposure (half the * Do not take contaminated work clothes home. Family PEL or greater, or significant skin contact), the following are members could be exposed. recommended before beginning work and at regular times after * Contaminated work clothes should be laundered by that: individuals who have been informed of the hazards of exposure to Sodium Arsenite. * Exam of the nose, skin, eyes, nails and nervous system. * Eye wash fountains should be provided in the immediate * Test for urine Arsenic. This is most accurate at the end of a work area for emergency use. workday. Eating shellfish or fish may elevate Arsenic * If there is the possibility of skin exposure, emergency levels for up to two days. At NIOSH recommended shower facilities should be provided. exposure levels, urine Arsenic should not be greater than 100 micrograms per gram of creatinine in the urine. * On skin contact with Sodium Arsenite, immediately wash * Where the potential exists for exposure over 0.002 mg/m3 or shower to remove the chemical. At the end of the (as Arsenic), use a NIOSH approved supplied-air respirator workshift, wash any areas of the body that may have with a full facepiece operated in a pressure-demand or other contacted Sodium Arsenite, whether or not known skin positive-pressure mode. For increased protection use in contact has occurred. combination with an auxiliary self-contained breathing * Do not eat, smoke, or drink where Sodium Arsenite is apparatus operated in a pressure-demand or other positive- handled, processed, or stored, since the chemical can be pressure mode. swallowed. Wash hands carefully before eating, drinking, * Exposure to 5 mg/m3 (as Arsenic) is immediately applying cosmetics, smoking, or using the toilet. dangerous to life and health. If the possibility of exposure * Use a vacuum or a wet method to reduce dust during clean- above 5 mg/m3 (as Arsenic) exists, use a NIOSH up. DO NOT DRY SWEEP. approved self-contained breathing apparatus with a full * When vacuuming, a high efficiency