What are Chemicals Agents? – Health and Safety Authority

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Chemicals agents or chemicals are present in every workplace. For example, inks, toners, adhesives, paints, oils, lubricants, hair dye, laboratory reagents, welding fume, hazardous medicinal products and cleaning fluids are all examples of chemicals.

The term chemical agent means any chemical element or compound, on its own or admixed, as it occurs in the natural state or as produced, used or released, including release as waste, by any work activity, whether or not produced intentionally and whether or not placed on the market.

Chemical agents that have the potential to cause harm to human health or physical harm are referred to as hazardous chemical agents.

Chemical agents can exist in different forms, for example as solids (dust, fumes, fibres, powders), as liquids (vapour, mists) or gases. Different forms of a chemical may present different hazards. For example, a chemical agent in a solid form may not be hazardous but if ground into a powder or dust it may be hazardous when breathed into the lungs.

A hazardous chemical agent may be:

• Brought directly into the workplace and handled, stored and used for processing, for example, solvents, cleaning agents, glues, resins or paints.
• Generated by a process or work activity, for example, fumes from welding or soldering, dust from machining wood, flour dust or solvent vapours.
• Generated as waste or residue, for example, carbon monoxide from a generator or engine.

Where are Hazardous Chemical Agents Found?

Hazardous chemical agents can be found in nearly all work environments such as:

• Factories
• Hairdressers
• Shops
• Construction sites
• Farms
• Hospitals
• Printing works
• Dry cleaners
• Offices
• Mines, and so on.

Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals

There are four main routes by which a worker can be exposed to a dangerous chemical:

1. Inhalation – by breathing in air contaminated with the chemical. This is the most common route of exposure.
2. Absorption – by contact with the skin or eyes. Some chemicals can damage the skin or cause eye irritation on contact or pass through the skin or mucous membranes into the body.
3. Ingestion – by accidentally swallowing the chemical, for example eating with contaminated hands.
4. Injection – by injecting the chemical into the bloodstream.   

What Harm can Hazardous Chemical Agents Cause to Workers?

The type of harm will depend on the hazardous chemical agent. Examples of the effects of hazardous chemical agents include:

• Asthma as a result of exposure to a respiratory sensitiser such as flour dust or soldering flux.
• Skin irritation or dermatitis as a result of skin contact with a substance such as cement or some degreasing agents.
• Cancer, which may appear long after the exposure to the chemical that caused it, such as with asbestos or benzene.
• Loss of consciousness as a result of being overcome by toxic fumes such as solvent vapours.
• Eye irritation from a splash of caustic or acid which may result in eye irritation or loss of eye sight in severe cases.

CDC | Chemical Agents | Emergency Preparedness & Response

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC twenty four seven. Saving Lives, Protecting People
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC twenty four seven. Saving Lives, Protecting People

Emergency Preparedness and Response

A to Z | By Category

1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D
5. E
6. F
7. G
8. H
9. I
10. J
11. K
12. L
13. M
14. N
15. O
16. P
17. Q
18. R
19. S
20. T
21. U
22. V
23. W
24. X
25. Y
26. Z

A

• Abrin
• Adamsite (DM)
• Ammonia
• Arsenic
• Arsine (SA)

B

• Barium
• Benzene
• Brevetoxin
• Bromine (CA)
• Bromobenzylcyanide (CA) see Riot Control Agents
• BZ

C

• Carbon Monoxide
• Chlorine (CL)
• Chloroacetophenone (CN) see Riot Control Agents
• Chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile (CS) see Riot Control Agents
• Chloropicrin (PS) see Riot Control Agents
• Chromium
• Colchicine
• Cyanide

D

• Dibenzoxazepine (CR) see Riot Control Agents
• Digitalis
• Distilled mustard (HD) see Sulfur mustard

E

• Ethylene glycol

F

• Fentanyls and other opioids

H

• Hydrazine
• Hydrofluoric acid (hydrogen fluoride)
• Hydrogen chloride
• Hydrogen cyanide (AC)
• Hydrogen fluoride (hydrofluoric acid)

L

• Lewisite (L, L-1, L-2, L-3)
• Long-acting anticoagulant (super warfarin)

M

• Mercury
• Methyl bromide
• Methyl isocyanate
• Mustard gas (H) (sulfur mustard)

N

• Nicotine
• Nitrogen mustard (HN-1, HN-2, HN-3)

O

• Opioids
• Osmium tetroxide

P

• Paraquat
• Phosgene (CG)
• Phosgene oxime (CX)
• Phosphine
• Phosphorus, elemental, white or yellow
• Potassium cyanide (KCN)

R

• Ricin
• Riot Control Agents

S

• Sarin (GB)
• Saxitoxin
• Selenium
• Sodium azide
• Sodium cyanide (NaCN) see Cyanide
• Sodium monofluoroacetate (compound 1080)
• Soman(GD)
• Stibine
• Strychnine
• Sulfur mustard (H) (mustard gas)
• Sulfuryl fluoride
• Super warfarin (long-acting anticoagulant)

T

• Tabun (GA)
• Tetrodotoxin
• Thallium
• Trichothecene

V

• VX

W

• White phosphorus

Page last reviewed: April 4, 2018

Content source: National Center for Environmental Health

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What’s this?

Hazardous chemical agents and explosives prohibited from moving to the transport security zone in accordance with the Order of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation dated July 23, 2015 No.

227, detected by the ChemExpert monitoring and control system

Design and manufacture of analytical equipment

+7 (499) 613-11-77

en | en

Possibilities of implementing the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation dated July 23, 2015 No. 227 at transport infrastructure facilities during inspection, additional inspection, re-examination in order to ensure transport security using identifiers of hazardous chemical agents and explosives – portable Raman spectrometers “KhimExpert”.

9 0025

900 20 no

9002 0 no

900 20 yes

90 020 yes (salts)

9 0013

9No 018

Substances for which there is a ban or restriction on movement to the transport security zone	Possibilities of ChemExpert software
	Detection	Identification
Explosives (Chapter 2.2 X “Rules for Inspection…”)
Brisant	yes	yes
Industrial	yes	yes
Initiating	yes	yes based on nitrogen compounds and other mixtures with or without means of initiation	yes	yes
Perchlorates	yes	yes
Pyroxylin, smoky and other gunpowders.	yes	yes
Hazardous chemical agents (Clause 3.2 of Chapter X of the “Inspection Rules…”)
3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl-2-propanone	yes 900 15	no
Adamsite	yes	no
Nitric acid	yes	yes
Aconitine	yes	yes
Ammonia	yes	yes
Acetic anhydride	yes	yes
Arsine	yes	no
Aceclidine	yes	no
Bi-Zet – Quinuclidyl-3-benzilate (from BZ) – 3-quinuclidyl ester of benzyl acid	yes	no
Hydrogen bromide	yes	yes 0015
VI-gas, VX (from the English. VX), EA 1701 – O-ethyl -8-2-diisopropylaminoethylmethylphosphonate	yes	no
Tungsten hexafluoride	yes	no
Gi oscyamine – base, camphorate (L-tropyltropate (camphorate), sulfate (L-tropyltropate (sulfate)	yes	yes
Glyfluoro (1,3-difluoropropanol-2 (1) 70 – 75%, 1-fluoro-3-chloropropanol-2 (2) 10-20%)	yes
Mustard gas (mustard gas)	yes	yes
I-M liquid (ethyl cellosolve 50%, methanol 50%)	yes 9 0015	yes
Liquid containing sodium chloride, uranyl nitrate , 4-chlorobenzaldehyde	yes	no
Sarin and Soman	yes	yes
snake venom	yes
Diborane	yes	no
Isosafrole	yes	yes
Carbacholine (N-(beta-carbamoyloxyethyl)-trimethylammonium chloride)	yes	yes
Lysergide	yes	no
Lewisite	yes	no
Maleic anhydride	yes 9001 5	yes
Mercaptophos	yes	no
Methyl alcohol	yes	yes
Arsenic anhydride and its derivatives, including their dosage forms in different dosages	yes	yes
Novarsenol (5-(3-amino-4-hydroxyphenylarseno)-2-hydroxyanilinomethylsulfoxylate)	yes	no
Perfluoroisobutene	no
Piperonal	yes	yes
Promeran (3-chloromercury-2-methoxypropylurea) and its dosage forms in various dosages	yes	no0015	yes	no
Ricin	yes	no
Metal mercury and mercury salts	no
Safrole	yes	yes
Sulfur dioxide	yes	yes
Sulfuric acid	yes	yes
Carbon disulfide	yes	yes
CN – chloroacetophenone	yes	no
CS – o-chlorobenzylidenemalonic acid dinitrile	yes	no
Cu-Ar – dibenzoxazepine	yes	no
Hydrocyanic (hydrocyanic) acid, Zyklon-B and metal cyanides	yes	yes
Scopolamine hydrobromide x	yes	yes
Synthetic ethyl alcohol, technical and food, unsuitable for the production of alcoholic beverages	yes	yes
Total belladonna alkaloids	yes	no
Salts of pyrophosphoric acid	yes	yes
Salts of hydrocyanic and thiocyanic acids	yes	yes
Thallium and its salts	yes (salts)	no
Nickel tetracarbonyl	yes	no
Tetraethyl lead and its mixtures with other substances (ethyl liquid and others), except for leaded gasolines	yes	yes
Phosphorus trichloride	yes	no
Boron trifluoride	no
Phosgene and diphosgene	yes	no
Zinc phosphide	yes	no
Phosphorus white (phosphorus yellow)	yes	yes
Ferrocyanides	yes	no
Fluorine and strong organic acids	yes	no	yes	yes
Formaldehyde	yes	yes
Chloroform (Trichloromethane)	yes	no
Chlorine and chlorine-substituted strong organic acids	yes	yes
Boron chloride	yes	no
Hydrochloric acid	yes	yes
Chloropicrin	yes	no
Cyan hydrogen	yes	yes
Cyanic and cyanuric acids, substituted fluorinated and chlorinated	yes
Oxalic acid	yes	yes
Chilibukha extract	yes	no
Ergometrine and its salts	yes	no
Ergotamine and its salts	yes	no
Ethylmercuric chloride	yes	yes
Ethylene oxide	yes	no 013	Ethylene glycol	yes	yes

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Biodegradable release agents

Biodegradable release agents are essential for the proper release of concrete from a wide variety of equipment. This prevents its destruction and aging.

In the process of production of concrete products and structures, molds from various materials are used. For each of them, it is important to ensure proper cleaning, which would not harm the surface. This allows you to extend the life of the equipment, reduce capital costs.

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Properties of biodegradable separating agents

In order to be able to clean the formwork of various materials in the production of concrete structures, enterprises use various chemicals. They separate the material of the product from the form in which it was created. Both the durability of the formwork and the duration of the cleaning process depend on the quality of these substances.

Biodegradable release agents are considered the most advanced chemicals in this class. They do not contain solvents. Therefore, under environmental conditions, all components are quickly decomposed. These are the most environmentally friendly types of separating agents.

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