Do not rely on someone else that has informed you that they have done the inspection earlier that day, or the inspection was completed yesterday.

Maintenance often comes from a location out of the worksite - something done at a third-party location, or maybe back at a service location.

Storage: Store in an area that is: cool, dry, out of direct sunlight and away from heat and ignition sources, separate from incompatible materials. Avoid bulk storage indoors. Regularly inspect for physical changes or signs of crystallization, damage or leaks.

Sulfuric acidboiling point

Inhalation: Take precautions to ensure your own safety before attempting rescue (e.g. wear appropriate protective equipment). Move victim to fresh air. Keep at rest in a position comfortable for breathing. If breathing is difficult, trained personnel should administer emergency oxygen. If breathing has stopped, trained personnel should begin artificial respiration (AR). DO NOT allow victim to move about unnecessarily. Symptoms of pulmonary edema may be delayed. Get medical attention as soon as possible. Treatment is urgently required. Transport to a hospital.

The next time you're on a worksite when there's mobile plan and lifting kit around you, think about what the rules are for that site.

If your organisation operates in the construction or civil's industry (or others similar), there is no doubt that you will have to manage the risks and maintenance associated to plant and equipment.

Skin Protection: Wear chemical protective clothing e.g. gloves, aprons, boots. Suitable materials (sulfuric acid 30-70%) include:  butyl rubber, natural rubber, neoprene rubber, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Viton®, Viton®/butyl rubber, AlphaTec® (02-100, 4000, EVO, VPS), Kemblok®,  Silver Shield® - PE/EVAL/PE, Saranex®™, Chemprotex® 300, ChemMAX® 3, Tychem®  6000.

Sulfuric acidformula

This involves observing what is going on and using common sense in the practices you take associated to reversing plant and equipment at your worksite.

A list of which acts and regulations that cover exposure limits to chemical and biological agents is available on our website. Please note that while you can see the list of legislation for free, you will need a subscription to view the actual documentation.

The inspection criteria should be specific to that plant and equipment and also may need to be specific to that site and the activities that you will be undertaking.

Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy, currency and completeness of the information, CCOHS does not guarantee, warrant, represent or undertake that the information provided is correct, accurate or current. CCOHS is not liable for any loss, claim, or demand arising directly or indirectly from any use or reliance upon the information.

Recommendations apply only to National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) approved respirators. Refer to the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards for more information.

Remember, you may do this on a regular basis, but it's important that we think about the human factors here. We all from time to time, make mistakes, whether that be us operating the kit, or others around us walking into areas that they shouldn't. Stay Alert!

Stay alert and be seen is the message for people that are walking around the worksite where there are vehicles reversing.

NOTE: In many (but not all) Canadian jurisdictions, the exposure limits are similar to the ACGIH® TLVs®. Since legislation varies by jurisdiction, contact your local jurisdiction for exact details. A list is available in the OSH Answers on Canadian Governmental Occupational Health & Safety Departments.

These rules must be set from an organisational or a site management level, and it's important that protocol is in place for when people join the site.

Inspection sheets, or other forms of electronic inspections may be available to you and if not, it's time to ask the question where this can be found. It should become part of the work pack and there should be clear instructions associated to this.

It's important to think about other factors in terms of stopping Jobs, raising awareness and safety behaviours of individuals.

Handling: Avoid generating vapours or mists. Immediately report leaks, spills, or failures of the safety equipment (e.g., ventilation system). Prevent unintentional contact with incompatible chemicals. Never add water to a corrosive. Always add corrosives slowly to COLD water. If the product is transferred to another container, ensure the new container is suitable for the product. Never reuse empty containers, even if they appear to be clean.

Hydrosulfuricacid

Adapted from: 2022 TLVs® and BEIs® - Threshold Limit Values for Chemical Substances and Physical Agents and Biological Exposure Indices. Cincinnati: American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH)

Specific Hazards Arising from the Chemical: Contact with water causes violent frothing and spattering. Reacts with metals to produce highly flammable hydrogen gas. Closed containers may rupture violently when heated releasing contents. In a fire, the following hazardous materials may be generated: corrosive sulfur oxides.

Before you use any plant or equipment, it is vital that this be inspected and any faults found are reported to your supervisor. Operators of plant should have access to the manuals / guides for information on how to set-up and inspect the plant.

Engineering Controls: Use a local exhaust ventilation and enclosure, if necessary, to control amount in the air. Use stringent control measures such as process enclosure to prevent product release into the workplace. Use a corrosion-resistant exhaust ventilation system separate from other ventilation systems.

Eye Contact: Avoid direct contact. Wear chemical protective gloves if necessary. Quickly and gently blot or brush chemical off the face. Immediately flush the contaminated eye(s) with gently flowing water for at least 30 minutes, occasionally lifting the upper and lower eyelids. If a contact lens is present, DO NOT delay flushing or attempt to remove the lens. Neutral solution may be used as soon as it is available. DO NOT INTERRUPT FLUSHING. If necessary, continue flushing during transport to hospital. Take care not to rinse contaminated water into the unaffected eye or onto the face. Get medical attention as soon as possible. Treatment is urgently required. Transport to a hospital.

Sulfuric aciddensity

Make sure you know the safe working load of your machine and the weight of any load you are required to lift. Try the load by lifting in slightly and halting, to see if the machine can take the load. Never leave the cab whilst load is suspended.

Concentratedsulfuric acid

The purpose of this video is to raise some awareness of the hazards associated with vehicles and mobile plant at workplaces and the means of reducing the risk.

According to the Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), sulfuric acid can be classified as:

Emergency Overview: Clear colourless oily liquid. Odourless. Will not burn. VERY TOXIC. Fatal if inhaled. Can form very hazardous decomposition products. Highly Reactive. Incompatible with many common chemicals. Reacts violently with water. CORROSIVE. Causes severe skin burns and eye damage. Strong inorganic acid mists containing sulfuric acid are carcinogenic.

Reversing vehicles on work sites account for approximately 25% of incidents that occur on work sites. This may be because:

Is the route clear? Are there suitable and sufficient barrier in place? Are other operations that are going on being made aware of the activity that you're going to be carrying out? It may be that permits are required in order for that to happen.

Suitable Extinguishing Media: Not combustible. Use extinguishing agent suitable for surrounding fire. ONLY Use water to keep non-leaking, fire-exposed containers cool.

It's important from a leadership and a cultural point of view that these maintenance activities continue to happen. There may be many safety critical features on a piece of equipment, and if these deteriorate or stop functioning, you could be putting people at that worksite at much greater risk of harm.

Personal Precautions: Evacuate the area immediately. Isolate the hazard area. Keep out unnecessary and unprotected personnel. Do not touch damaged containers or spilled product unless wearing appropriate protective equipment. Remove or isolate incompatible materials as well as other hazardous materials.

It's important that not only the people that could be at risk of harm from impact from a site vehicle or plant, but also the people that are using this equipment are aware of the risks and understand the rules of the site.

Sulfuric acid

In many cases, you will need to inspect the equipment before it's use, relying on your own judgement and following guides that are provided to us in the workplace.

Ingestion: Have victim rinse mouth with water. If vomiting occurs naturally, have victim lean forward to reduce risk of aspiration. Have victim rinse mouth with water again. Get medical attention as soon as possible. Treatment is urgently required. Transport to a hospital.

CAS Registry No.: 7664-93-9Other Names: Battery acid, sulphuric acidMain Uses: Manufacture of fertilizers and other chemicals; petroleum refining; battery component.Appearance: Clear colourless oily liquid. Yellow to dark brown in colour when impure.Odour: Odourless

Please be aware of some of the rules on your site associated to lifting operations and some of the requirements that you need to follow.

Nitricacid

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Please note that this classification was retrieved from the CNESST site on February 22, 2023and was established by CNESST personnel to the best of their knowledge based on data obtained from scientific literature and it incorporates the criteria contained in the Hazardous Products Regulations (SOR/2015-17). It does not replace the supplier’s classification which can be found on its Safety Data Sheet.

Skin Contact: Avoid direct contact. Wear chemical protective clothing if necessary. Quickly take off contaminated clothing, shoes and leather goods (e.g. watchbands, belts). Quickly and gently blot or brush away excess chemical. Immediately flush with gently flowing water for at least 30 minutes. DO NOT INTERRUPT FLUSHING. If it can be done safely, continue flushing during transport to hospital. Get medical attention as soon as possible. Treatment is urgently required. Transport to a hospital. Double bag, seal, label and leave contaminated clothing, shoes, and leather goods at the scene for safe disposal.

Here, we want to talk a little bit more about some of the requirements that should be in place associated to mobile plant and lifting equipment on a site.

Methods for Containment and Clean-up: Small spills or leaks: contain and soak up spill with absorbent that does not react with spilled product. Place used absorbent into suitable, covered, labelled containers for disposal. Large spills or leaks: contain and soak up spill with absorbent that does not react with spilled product. Dike spilled product to prevent runoff. Remove or recover liquid using pumps or vacuum equipment. Place used absorbent into suitable, covered, labelled containers for disposal. Store recovered product in suitable containers that are: corrosion-resistant. Contaminated absorbent poses the same hazard as the spilled product.

H2SO4

Never attempt to operate a crane, forklift or pother type of lifting machine unless you hold the relevant certificate and are verified to be competent. It's important that you understand the type of kit that is being used, and the activities you're doing.

There are a number of human errors that can occur associated to that. One of the key ones is around communication and who takes control - often the main operator.

Establishing a planned maintenance program may be a useful step towards reducing risk, as well as having a reporting procedure for workers who may notice problems while working on mobile plant and vehicles.

You cannot just simply rely on the maintenance activity, because it may be a three-six month or one-year activity. Various things can happen to that plant and equipment during this time. They could move sites and be used by a multitude of different people, who don't report problems that arise.

First Aid Comments: Some of the first aid procedures recommended here require advanced first aid training. All first aid procedures should be periodically reviewed by a medical professional familiar with the chemical and its conditions of use in the workplace.

Exposure Guideline Comments: TLV® = Threshold Limit Value. TWA = Time-Weighted Average. T = Thoracic particulate matter. Sulfuric acid itself has not been evaluated for carcinogenicity. (M) ACGIH has evaluated strong inorganic mists containing sulfuric acid. This classification is A2 - Suspected human carcinogen.

Other Information: Large spills: contact supplier, local fire and emergency services for help. Report spills to local health, safety and environmental authorities, as required.

In both cases, the plan should guide you through steps to follow in order to control the hazards and reduce risks associated to the activity.

Up to 15 mg/m3: (APF = 25) Any supplied-air respirator operated in a continuous-flow mode*; or Any powered, air-purifying respirator with acid gas cartridge(s) in combination with a high-efficiency particulate filter*.(APF = 50) Any chemical cartridge respirator with a full facepiece and acid gas cartridge(s) in combination with an N100, R100, or P100 filter; or Any air-purifying, full-facepiece respirator (gas mask) with a chin-style, front- or back-mounted acid gas canister having an N100, R100, or P100 filter; or Any self-contained breathing apparatus with a full facepiece; or Any supplied-air respirator with a full facepiece.