Welding Fume Safety
Welding is a technology that joins two metal surfaces with the use of heat and electric current. It is used manufacturing routinely to fabricate products that are used in many different industries. Welding uses a machine that delivers current to the work area through a hand-held gun, while thin rods of metal made of different compositions are melted to join the metal surfaces. This process produces fumes that can be detrimental to your health.
Other People Are Reading
-
What Makes Welding Fumes?
-
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees states that welding fumes and gases are produced by several factors, such as the base material being welded, paints or other coatings on the metal or on the electrode, from chemical reactions by ultraviolet light, by contaminants in the air and from the shielding gases themselves. The fumes may contain many different substances that are known to be harmful.
Composition
-
Welding smoke and fumes are a mixture of particles and gases. These can contain chromium, manganese, nickel, silica, nitrogen oxides, cadmium, fluorine compounds, cobalt, copper, lead, zinc, selenium, carbon monoxide and others depending on what materials are being welded and what materials are being used to join them. These compounds can affect any part of the body--not only the lungs, but the heart, kidneys and central nervous system as well.
-
Health Hazards
-
Welding smoke can irritate the lungs, eyes, nose and chest. Breathing these fumes can cause short-term shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, bronchitis, fluid in the lungs and inflammation of the lungs. It can also produce gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, cramps, loss of appetite and slow digestion. Long-term effects of exposure to welding fumes can include lung cancer, and there is some evidence that it can also cause cancer of the larynx and urinary tract, heart disease, hearing loss, ulcers of the stomach, and various other types of cancer. Chromium, cadmium, arsenic and beryllium are particularly dangerous substances that are present in welding fumes. Manganese exposure can cause a Parkinson's-like syndrome that causes tremors, poor balance, muscle rigidity and slowness of movement.
Safety Equipment
-
The use of protective respirator masks with an appropriate filter cartridge for the materials being welded is recommended. This can be accompanied by breathing air compressors to assist respiration through this additional safety measure. Shop areas that are open to fresh air and the use of large fans to dilute fumes in the work area are necessary. Ambient capture systems that are installed above the work areas to remove fumes are also helpful. Local exhaust ventilation is a system that removes fumes directly from the welding surface area. Fume guns can be used to remove contaminants directly from the work surface as it is being welded.
Minimizing Health Risks
-
Using welding safety equipment appropriately and regularly is the single best way to prevent both short-term and long-term health risks from welding fumes.
-
References
- Photo Credit welding image by glgec from Fotolia.com
