Common Name: GALLIUM CAS Number: 7440-55-3 RTK Substance number: 0956 DOT Number: UN 2803 Date: February 1988 Revision: January 2001 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- HAZARD SUMMARY WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS * Gallium can affect you when breathed in. No occupational exposure limits have been established for * Gallium is a CORROSIVE CHEMICAL and contact can Gallium. This does not mean that this substance is not severely irritate and burn the skin and eyes with possible harmful. Safe work practices should always be followed. eye damage. * Breathing Gallium can irritate the nose and throat causing WAYS OF REDUCING EXPOSURE coughing and wheezing. * Where possible, enclose operations and use local exhaust * Gallium may damage the liver and kidneys. ventilation at the site of chemical release. If local exhaust * Gallium may affect the nervous system and lungs. ventilation or enclosure is not used, respirators should be * High exposure to Gallium may affect the bone marrow's worn. ability to make blood cells causing anemia. * Wear protective work clothing. * Wash thoroughly immediately after exposure to Gallium IDENTIFICATION and at the end of the workshift. Gallium is a lustrous, silvery liquid or metal or a gray solid. * Post hazard and warning information in the work area. In Gallium compounds are used as semiconductors. addition, as part of an ongoing education and training effort, communicate all information on the health and REASON FOR CITATION safety hazards of Gallium to potentially exposed workers. * Gallium is on the Hazardous Substance List because it is cited by DOT. * This chemical is on the Special Health Hazard Substance List because it is CORROSIVE. * Definitions are provided on page 5. HOW TO DETERMINE IF YOU ARE BEING EXPOSED The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers to label chemicals in the workplace and requires public employers to provide their employees with information and training concerning chemical hazards and controls. The federal OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 1910.1200, requires private employers to provide similar training and information to their employees. * Exposure to hazardous substances should be routinely evaluated. This may include collecting personal and area air samples. You can obtain copies of sampling results from your employer. You have a legal right to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. * If you think you are experiencing any work-related health problems, see a doctor trained to recognize occupational diseases. Take this Fact Sheet with you. GALLIUM page 2 of 6 This Fact Sheet is a summary source of information of all Mixed Exposures potential and most severe health hazards that may result from * Because smoking can cause heart disease, as well as lung exposure. Duration of exposure, concentration of the cancer, emphysema, and other respiratory problems, it may substance and other factors will affect your susceptibility to worsen respiratory conditions caused by chemical any of the potential effects described below. exposure. Even if you have smoked for a long time, --------------------------------------------------------------------------- stopping now will reduce your risk of developing health problems. HEALTH HAZARD INFORMATION * Because more than light alcohol consumption can cause liver damage, drinking alcohol can increase the liver Acute Health Effects damage caused by Gallium. The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur immediately or shortly after exposure to Gallium: WORKPLACE CONTROLS AND PRACTICES * Contact can severely irritate and burn the skin and eyes Unless a less toxic chemical can be substituted for a hazardous with possible eye damage. substance, ENGINEERING CONTROLS are the most * Breathing Gallium can irritate the nose and throat causing effective way of reducing exposure. The best protection is to coughing and wheezing. enclose operations and/or provide local exhaust ventilation at the site of chemical release. Isolating operations can also Chronic Health Effects reduce exposure. Using respirators or protective equipment is The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at less effective than the controls mentioned above, but is some time after exposure to Gallium and can last for months sometimes necessary. or years: In evaluating the controls present in your workplace, consider: Cancer Hazard (1) how hazardous the substance is, (2) how much of the * According to the information presently available to the substance is released into the workplace and (3) whether New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, harmful skin or eye contact could occur. Special controls Gallium has not been tested for its ability to cause cancer should be in place for highly toxic chemicals or when in animals. significant skin, eye, or breathing exposures are possible. Reproductive Hazard In addition, the following control is recommended: * While Gallium has been tested, further testing is required to assess its potential to affect reproduction. * Where possible, automatically transfer Gallium metal or pump liquid Gallium from drums or other storage Other Long-Term Effects containers to process containers. * Gallium may damage the liver and kidneys. * Gallium may affect the nervous system and lungs. Good WORK PRACTICES can help to reduce hazardous * High exposure to Gallium may affect the bone marrow's exposures. The following work practices are recommended: ability to make blood cells causing anemia. * Workers whose clothing has been contaminated by MEDICAL Gallium should change into clean clothing promptly. * Do not take contaminated work clothes home. Family Medical Testing members could be exposed. If symptoms develop or overexposure is suspected, the * Contaminated work clothes should be laundered by following are recommended: individuals who have been informed of the hazards of exposure to Gallium. * Liver and kidney function tests. * Eye wash fountains should be provided in the immediate * Complete blood count. work area for emergency use. * Lung function tests and chest x-ray. * If there is the possibility of skin exposure, emergency * Exam of the nervous system. shower facilities should be provided. * On skin contact with Gallium, immediately wash or Any evaluation should include a careful history of past and shower to remove the chemical. present symptoms with an exam. Medical tests that look for * On skin contact with Gallium, immediately wash or damage already done are not a substitute for controlling shower to remove the chemical. At the end of the exposure. workshift, wash any areas of the body that may have contacted Gallium, whether or not known skin contact has Request copies of your medical testing. You have a legal occurred. right to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. * For solid Gallium use a vacuum or a wet method to reduce dust during clean-up. DO NOT DRY SWEEP. GALLIUM page 3 of 6 PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT facepiece respirator, leave the area immediately. Check to make sure the respirator-to-face seal is still good. If it is, WORKPLACE CONTROLS ARE BETTER THAN replace the filter or cartridge. If the seal is no longer good, PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT. However, for you may need a new respirator. some jobs (such as outside work, confined space entry, jobs * Be sure to consider all potential exposures in your done only once in a while, or jobs done while workplace workplace. You may need a combination of filters, controls are being installed), personal protective equipment prefilters or cartridges to protect against different forms of may be appropriate. a chemical (such as vapor and mist) or against a mixture of chemicals. OSHA 1910.132 requires employers to determine the * Where the potential for high exposure exists, use a appropriate personal protective equipment for each hazard and MSHA/NIOSH approved supplied-air respirator with a full to train employees on how and when to use protective facepiece operated in a pressure-demand or other positive- equipment. pressure mode. For increased protection use in combination with an auxiliary self-contained breathing The following recommendations are only guidelines and may apparatus operated in a pressure-demand or other positive- not apply to every situation. pressure mode. Clothing QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS * Avoid skin contact with Gallium. Wear protective gloves and clothing. Safety equipment suppliers/manufacturers Q: If I have acute health effects, will I later get chronic can provide recommendations on the most protective health effects? glove/clothing material for your operation. A: Not always. Most chronic (long-term) effects result * All protective clothing (suits, gloves, footwear, headgear) from repeated exposures to a chemical. should be clean, available each day, and put on before work. Q: Can I get long-term effects without ever having short- term effects? Eye Protection A: Yes, because long-term effects can occur from repeated * Wear impact resistant eye protection with side shields or exposures to a chemical at levels not high enough to goggles. make you immediately sick. * Wear indirect-vent, impact and splash resistant goggles when working with liquids. Q: What are my chances of getting sick when I have been * Wear a face shield along with goggles when working with exposed to chemicals? corrosive, highly irritating or toxic substances. A: The likelihood of becoming sick from chemicals is increased as the amount of exposure