Phthalate Plasticizers & Environmental Health & Safety
Phthalates, a highly controversial class of synthetic substances used to make plastics soft and pliable, present a significant environmental health and safety (EH&S) hazard. While restrictions on some phthalates have been instituted in many industrialized countries, little has been done at a regulatory level to mitigate their risks to EH&S in the workplace.
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Chemistry
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Phthalates are a group of phthalic acid esters synthesized by the reaction of an alcohol with phthalic acid. The structure of phthalates is characterized by an aromatic ring with two ester chains of varying lengths attached.
Flammability
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Phthalates are typically slightly flammable. DEHP (Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate), an infamous substance belonging to the phthalate group, is assigned a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) rating of 1, slight fire hazard.
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Toxic Properties
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The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that acute exposure to DEHP and phthalates of similar structure causes irritation to the eyes, skin, mucosa and respiratory tract in addition to dizziness and nausea. OHSA also warns that chronic occupational exposure to these substances may cause polyneuritis and vestibular dysfunction, meaning muscle pain, weakness, numbness, spasms in the arms and legs, and vertigo (dizziness or loss of balance).
Exposure Limits
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NIOSH, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and ACGIH, the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, set limits on the amount of DEHP that a worker can safely be exposed to at 5 milligrams per cubic meter per day. Good industrial hygiene practices would normally require applying this limit to other phthalates in the workplace.
Controversy
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In recent years, biomonitoring surveys have identified metabolites of some types of phthalates in a large segment of the U.S. population. Because these substances are known to have effects on the endocrine systems in humans, this data prompted several governments, including the U.S., to restrict the use of certain phthalates in toys and child-care articles.
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