Section 1 - CHEMICAL PRODUCT AND COMPANY IDENTIFICATION

PRODUCT NAME

WIA AUSTFLUX STAINLESS STEEL FLUX

NFPA

PRODUCT USE

Stainless steel welding flux. · Material is mixed and used in accordance with
manufacturers directions.

SYNONYMS

"Welding Industries", "stainless steel welding flux", "W.I.A. stainless steel flux",
"Austflux for S.S."

Section 2 - HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION

CANADIAN WHMIS SYMBOLS

EMERGENCY OVERVIEW

RISK

Harmful if swallowed.
Contact with acids liberates very toxic gas.
May impair fertility.
May cause harm to the unborn child.
Harmful: danger of serious damage to health by prolonged exposure through
inhalation.
Irritating to eyes, respiratory system and skin.

POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS

ACUTE HEALTH EFFECTS

SWALLOWED

  Accidental ingestion of the material may be harmful; animal experiments indicate that ingestion of less than 150 gram may be fatal or may produce serious damage to the health of the individual.  Considered an unlikely route of entry in commercial/industrial environments.  

EYE

  This material can cause eye irritation and damage in some persons.  Fumes from welding/brazing operations may be irritating to the eyes.  The material may produce severe irritation to the eye causing pronounced inflammation. Repeated or prolonged exposure to irritants may produce conjunctivitis.  

SKIN

  This material can cause inflammation of the skin oncontact in some persons.  Skin contact is not thought to have harmful health effects, however the material may still produce health damage following entry through wounds, lesions or abrasions.  

INHALED

  If inhaled, this material can irritate the throat andlungs of some persons.  Although inhalation is not thought to produce harmful effects, the material may still produce health damage, especially where pre-existing organ (e.g. liver, kidney) damage is evident. Present definitions of harmful or toxic substances are generally confined to doses producing mortality (death) rather than those producing morbidity (disease, ill-  health).  

CHRONIC HEALTH EFFECTS

  Ample evidence exists from experimentation that reduced human fertility is directly caused by exposure to the material.  Ample evidence exists, from results in experimentation, that developmental disorders are directly caused by human exposure to the material.  

  Principal routes of exposure are usually by skin contact/absorption and inhalation of fumes from welding.  Sodium borates are absorbed slowly through intact and skin and very rapidly  through broken skin but not to a sufficient extent to cause poisoning.  Chronic absorption may lead to boron deposition in the liver, brain, bone and  adipose tissue. Chronic dust inhalation may lead to inflammation of the  respiratory mucous membranes and conjunctivitis. (ILO Encyclopaedia)  A significant hazard associated with the product is the inhalation of  welding fumes. On heating fluoride gases are produced; these are highly  irritating to the respiratory tract and in high concentrations are corrosive.  Chronic fluoride poisoning has been related to skeletal abnormalities.  (ILO Encyclopaedia)