respirator for chlorine

[rogerxd45]

i need a respirator to protect mainly against chlorine gas.

 

im looking for the half-face type but i dont know anything about respirators and what type of filter i need.

 

any help would be great!

[louis wu]

rogerxd45

 

If you don't know much about respirators then you might be the wrong guy for the job.

 

Your profile does not give your location but here are some details about respirator use in the UK.

Indeed there are cartridges available to fit face masks that protect against chlorine. Half face masks are not suitable for use in chlorine contaminated atmospheres unless the chlorine level is truly insignificant.

In some circumstances a face mask would not be suitable, and the greater protection of a full suit airline respirator might be needed. An airline respirator requires an air supply, either from a back pack tank or through plastic piping from a compressed air supply.

 

In the UK, before anyone uses a face mask they have to pass a respirator fit test. This certifies that the mask is a suitable fit and is airtight. The size of mask that fits the individual is recorded on the certificate. Unusual facial contours or facial hair can mean a complete fail.

 

In the UK all chemicals need a COSHH (control of substances hazardous to health) assessment before use. In this a suitably qualified and experienced person carries out an assessment of the chemical and the hazards of its use. Steps taken to minimise the risks must be detailed. A COSHH assessment is mandatory. A wider ranging safety case may be needed.

 

Your thoughts that a respirator is required may well be wrong. In devising safe methods of lab work the use of respirators is sort of a last resort. If the chlorine cylinder can be left outside; high integrity piping can deliver the gas to a glovebox or Class 1 fume cupboard. Such a method of working is intrinsically safer than relying on respirators.

[lucky45]

I use a resperator with my science projects, You want to get a resperator that is NIOSH approved

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A NIOSH approved filter will do the job. What kind of project are you working on?

[rogerxd45]

calcium hypochlorate and HCL which will be chilled to a liquid putt in a vial with the top off and a coin or something similar on top so it only lets gas out but cant build up a pressure and once the liquid is gone i cap it and i have my chlorine sample for my element collection.

 

i did it outside but i stoped when the wind blew the wrong direction. eyes didnt sting but i could taste it pretty bad so I am going to get the respirator before i attempt again

 

i got a reply from 3M about which filter to use for chlorine gas. they said to use the "6002 acid gas" which fits my chosen mask

 

ive done stuff with chlorine before but have not attempted to make it a liquid before so this is the first time its been this concentrated in the surrounding air.

 

after this first round i got a couple better ideas on how to set my rig up. its still real ghetto but should work much better. I am useing alcohol and dry ice as a coolant but if they doesnt work after a couple tries i will get some liquid nitrogen (my best friends dad is a Dr. and said he can give me some)

[hermanntrude]

I'm really not very happy about the respirator idea. Chlorine is revolting stuff. Ideally you'd be using a fume hood, or just not using chlorine at all. Liquid chlorine is mildly interesting but it's only really a greenish liquid. Respirators have a nasty habit of letting gases get around the sides. Don't for a second think that you are invulnerable just because you have one on.

 

Make plans for what you will do with your chlorine when it's liquefied, and what you'll do if it gets spilled or accidentally released. Will you be risking anyone else's health? how can it be safely cleaned up?

[lucky45]

I aggree chlorine is nasty stuff. The chlorine that I make is a byproduct from Electrolizing Potassium chloride. Clorine is produced at the anode and hydrogen gas is produced at the cathode. I have a full face gas mask with 2 NIOSh approved filters, that cost me $300.00. On top of that I have a fumehood. When I boil Hydrochloric acid, chlorine,and KCLO3, I get chlorine dioxide. Trust me I take no chances. (NO ONE SHOULD EVER ATTEMP THIS PROCEDURE UNLESS YOU HAVE EXPERIANCE IN THIS FIELD) Not only are these gasess TOXIC, but very flammeble

[hermanntrude]

the fumehood is a very wise investment.

 

I'd say the best approach is to

 

1) consider not making chlorine at all

2) get a fume hood

3) consider not making chlorine at all again

4) consider doing it outside on a day with predictable low windspeeds and using a respirator

5) when you get a big whiff of chlorine and your throat hurts for a week, remember your lungs are damaged too, but you didn't feel that part, and don't blame us.

[rogerxd45]

i have full respect for chlorine and thank you for your warnings.

 

this will be done outside and the next setup will prevent the release (or at least decrease) the gas getting out at the reaction point. but will instead be ran through a tube that is chilled and will finnally end up at the test tube that is immersed in the alcohol dry ice mixture where some gas will inevitably be released into the air.

 

but this is a lot safer then my previous attempt of transferring the gas from one container to the other which solely relied on the density of the gas to get it into the test tube. but the problem was the wind plus the gas was warm and there for slightly less dense.

 

but in the new setup the cooled gas will be fed strait into the bottom of the chilled test tube where it will either condense into a liquid or overflow into the surrounding air. This also allows me to be further away from the point that the chlorine gas is released.

 

I am also butting the test tube collector inside of a 5 gallon bucket which should contain some of the overflow chlorine gas

 

over all with the resperator i belive this setup is much safer but i will abandon it if i feel it isnt safe at any time

[lucky45]

I am not shure, my friend but what are you trying to make,Im not shure

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My dear friend, Im not trying to make chlorine at all. The chlorine that Im making is a byproduct that occurs in the process of making Potassium Perchlorate, An extremley powerfull Oxidizer. Potassium Perchlorate is a type of salt that is not mined, it has to be made. There are other natural occuring Oxidizers Like Potassium Nitrate (BAT SHIT) but KCLO4 has to be synthisised.

To my up to date knowledge,

[rogerxd45]

I am not shure, my friend but what are you trying to make,Im not shure

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My dear friend, Im not trying to make chlorine at all. The chlorine that Im making is a byproduct that occurs in the process of making Potassium Perchlorate, An extremley powerfull Oxidizer. Potassium Perchlorate is a type of salt that is not mined, it has to be made. There are other natural occuring Oxidizers Like Potassium Nitrate (BAT SHIT) but KCLO4 has to be synthisised.

To my up to date knowledge,

 

im actually trying to make chlorine gas....well actually liquid chlorine

[hermanntrude]

I am not shure, my friend but what are you trying to make,Im not shure

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My dear friend, Im not trying to make chlorine at all. The chlorine that Im making is a byproduct that occurs in the process of making Potassium Perchlorate, An extremley powerfull Oxidizer. Potassium Perchlorate is a type of salt that is not mined, it has to be made. There are other natural occuring Oxidizers Like Potassium Nitrate (BAT SHIT) but KCLO4 has to be synthisised.

To my up to date knowledge,

 

lucky, you sound like a dangerous person. You know a little, but nowhere near enough. Please stop doing experimental chemistry until you learn a bit more, for your own safety.

 

by the way, bat faeces is not pure potassium nitrate by any means.

[jdurg]

Chlorine is an interesting element. I have, in my element collection, both gaseous and liquid chlorine. The price for puchasing a small sample of liquid chlorine is definitely worth it, as the only safe way to really obtain liquid chlorine is just too tedious and costly in it of itself to make it worth it. My liquid chlorine sample is approximately two milliliters of it sealed in a quartz ampoule further sealed in an acrylic resin casting. Liquid chlorine is truly a yellow liquid with a slight green tint to it.

 

For the gas, the method I used to obtain it was to take an earlenmeyer flask with a two holed stopper in it. One hole had an inlet for concentrated hydrochloric acid, and the other hole had a glass tube that led to another flask with another two-hole stopper in it. This flask was filled halfway with water. The inlet tube was under the surface of the water, and the outlet tube was above the surface. This outlet led to a test-tube with ANOTHER two-hole stopper in it. The inlet was under the surface of a bunch of sodium bicarbonate. The outlet was again above, and this was led into a large test tube with a one-hole stopper. I had the first flask filled quite a bit with a bunch of calcium hypochlorite. I poured the concentrated HCl into the first flask, then covered the top to prevent gas from escaping. Cl2 was generated and it moved through the outlet tube, into the water where some dissolved and all of the HCl dissolved, then the chlorine moved through the NaHCO3 where any water was absorbed, and the Cl2 that came out from that was pretty pure. It all collected in the large test tube where I let it collect until the tube obtained a green-yellow color. At that point, the stopper was taken off and the tube was quickly melted shut at the top. My friend then went and encased the tube in an acrylic resin and that is where it still sits, showing it's green-yellow color. Little to no gas escaped. This was all done outside and at no point did I notice any Cl2 odor.

 

While you do have to be safe when working with Cl2, it's not nearly as bad as working with H2S or HCN. My only bout of chemical stupidity did involve Cl2, however. I foolishly took some household bleach and put it in a sizeable bottle. At that point I poured some concentrated HCl into it and saw some vigorous fizzing and bubble formation. (Bubbles of Cl2 gas). The gas wasn't green like I thought it would be, however. So I went and put the container near my nose and inhaled. OUCH!!!!!!!!! I then learned that low concentrations of Cl2 aren't colored at all. It was painful, but no long term damage. That's when I realized why the act of smelling a gas involves wafting towards the nose and not direct inhalation.