Cartridge Respirator
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Cartridge Respirator
Fume Extraction Hood
If you work in a lab, be it in industry or in academia, odds are you are working with chemicals that are potentially, irritating, corrosive, poisonous, carcinogenic or have the potential to asphyxiate. All of these properties of chemicals are best to be avoided meaning, you just don't want to breathe the stuff. Keeping hazardous fumes out of your respirator system is easy to do with the right setup such as a professionally designed fume hood.
For many, respirators are their protection of choice, but respirators present several potential problems as a first line of defense with respect to fume or vapor exposure. The problems with respirators are as follows:
-They can leak. Respirator are only effective if they are fitted to your face properly and you have a complete seal all the way around the mask. Potential leaks can come from excessive facial hair, a mask that doesn't fit the shape of your face, a mask that is the not right size for your face, straps that are not snug to name a few.
-Cartridges are chemical specific. Many respirator have cartridges that screw on to the mask. Generally, these cartridges are filled with a substance such as charcoal packing to which the fumes adhere as you breathe in through them. If the cartridges are not rated for the types of fumes that you are working with, then the fumes will pass through and you will be exposed.
-Cartridges can become saturated. If you do have the correct types of cartridges and the fumes are adhering to the packing so that you do not breathe it in, it is only a matter of time before the cartridges become saturated with the fumes and every active site on the surface of the packing is occupied by a molecule of the fume. At this point, you begin breathing the fumes in.
-Respirators can leak when you talk or move your head in any direction. Whenever you talk or move your head left, right, up or down, you change the shape of your face. This presents the opportunity for the shape of your face to become mismatched with the shape of the mask. At this point leaks form and you are exposed to the chemical.
Fume extraction hoods have the potential to eliminate all of these problems by performing a function that respirators cannot do. They prevent you from breathing the fumes by removing them from the area entirely. A professionally designed fume hood calibrated by a trained professional will remove fumes from the work area. As a first line of defense against exposure, fume extraction hoods are superior to respirators. When you use a fume hood as your first line of defense against harmful vapors, you are utilizing engineering controls as an offensive measure as opposed to respirators that are a defensive measure. Additionally, fume extraction hoods prevent vapors from coming in contact with your skin, eyes and other lab or shop equipment with is also important. Check out the fume hoods mentioned below.
About the Author
If you are interested in find professionally designed and recommended fume hoods, check our the fume extraction hoods recommended by our chemistry lab equipment website: chemistry-lab-equipment.com.
I use a yellow cartridge for my respirator while acid gas, is that the right cartridge?
Yes, the yellow cartridge is good for both organic vapors and acid gases.
OSHA requires manufacturers to color-code cartridges according to the substances they rebuff. OSHA's color scheme is as follows:
Black -- organic vapors
White -- acid gas
Green -- ammonia gas
Blue -- carbon monoxide
Purple -- radioactive materials
Yellow -- mixture of acid gases and organic vapors
OSHA combines colors for other contaminant combinations. A black cartridge with a gray pre-filter, for instance, protects against particulates and organic vapors. Obviously, this black-and-gray job should be a staple item in a contractor's supply room.
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