Preliminary plant visit, industrial hygiene report, formaldehyde production facilities, Tenneco Chemicals, Inc., Fords, New Jersey.

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  A preliminary hygiene survey was conducted at Tenneco Chemicals, Inc., Fords, New Jersey to evaluate worker exposure to formaldehyde (50000) and the safety with which silver and metal oxide catalysts were used at the site. The facility produces 46 and 50 percent formaldehyde solutions using Formox and the silver catalyst units. The facility had an active safety program. Workers wore safety glasses, hard hats, and safety shoes. A manual existed on respiratory protection, safety and emergency procedures. The medical program consisted of yearly physical exams for all employees including a pulmonary function test, hearing test, eye examination, chest x-ray, blood test and a medical history questionnaire. Area air samples taken indicated less than 1 part per million (ppm) formaldehyde as a time weighted average. Control methods at the methanol (67561) unloading and handling area, control areas, process areas, storage areas, and at the truck loading facility were described. Slight formaldehyde odors were detected in very few areas in the Formox unit. Some of the equipment in the silver catalyst unit was beginning to deteriorate due to age. Problem areas in the silver unit included the use of packed seals for the volatile formaldehyde solution, and the interior storage tank in the silver catalyst unit. It is recommended that a greater effort be made to control formaldehyde vapors in the silver unit by improving housekeeping and maintenance or replacing equipment.
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Fires Hydrocarbons Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Preceptorship Safety Solvents
• Keywords:
  Chemical-industry-workers Chemical-manufacturing-industry Field-Study NIOSH-Survey Region-2 Respiratory-protection
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHECTB11421A
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Studies ; Control Technology
• Place as Subject:
  New Jersey ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 2 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-27
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00183687
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, ECTB 114-21a, 1982 Apr; :1-27
• CAS Registry Number:
  Formaldehyde (CAS RN 50-00-0) ; Methanol (CAS RN 67-56-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1982
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:281c148abdf5bcd12f6e38255f994aedf394e402c75da5555ed12ea64a977567ca8ccd5acc97fa3da9ea05fbc9004a9b8d4655b2b813481a2b6f10461649f967
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/180152/cdc_180152_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 9.00 MB ]