Trichloroethylene (TCE)
Environmental Sources
Trichloroethylene (TCE) is a non-flammable, colourless liquid with a
somewhat sweet odour and a sweet, burning taste. It is used mainly as
a solvent to remove grease from metal parts, but it is also an ingredient
in adhesives, paint removers, typewriter correction fluids, and spot removers.
Trichloroethylene is not thought to occur naturally in the environment.
However, it has been found in underground water sources and many surface
waters as a result of the manufacture, use, and disposal of the chemical.
Human Health Effects
Breathing small amounts may cause headaches, lung irritation, dizziness,
poor coordination, and difficulty concentrating. Breathing large amounts
of trichloroethylene may cause impaired heart function, unconsciousness,
and death. Breathing it for long periods may cause nerve, kidney, and
liver damage.
Drinking large amounts of trichloroethylene may cause nausea, liver
damage, unconsciousness, impaired heart function, or death. Drinking small
amounts of trichloroethylene for long periods may cause liver and kidney
damage, impaired immune system function, and impaired foetal development
in pregnant women, although the extent of some of these effects is not
yet clear.
Skin contact with trichloroethylene for short periods may cause skin
rashes. Some studies with mice and rats have suggested that high levels
of trichloroethylene may cause liver or lung cancer. Some studies of people
exposed over long periods to high levels of trichloroethylene in drinking
water or in workplace air have found evidence of increased cancer. However,
these results are inconclusive because the cancer could have been caused
by other chemicals. It is a potential carcinogen.
Exposure limits
- The Bay Area Air Quality Management District in San Francisco, USA
documented a background concentration level of <0.8 ppb for trichloroethylene
for the whole bay area in San Francisco.
- The US EPA has set a maximum contaminant level for trichloroethylene
in drinking water at 0.005 milligrams per liter (0.005 mg/L) or 5 parts
of TCE per billion parts water.
- The US EPA has also developed regulations for the handling and disposal
of trichloroethylene.
- The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set
an exposure limit of 100 parts of trichloroethylene per million parts
of air (100 ppm) for an 8-hour workday, 40-hour workweek.
Sources & links:
www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts19.html
www.modcon.co.il/exposure.htm
www.dhs.cahwnet.gov/ohb/HESIS/tce.htm
www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/chem_profiles/trichloroethylene/
working_trichloro.html
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