Toxic gas exposure limits and alarm levels, Portable Gas Detection

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Alarm Levels
It is important to note that whereas portable gas detection instruments measure and alarm at the TWA levels, instantaneous alarms set at the same
numerical values of the 8hr TWA are included to provide early warning of an exposure to dangerous gas concentrations. Workers are often under
risk of gas exposure in situations where atmospheres cannot be controlled, such as in confined space entry applications where alarming at TWA
values would be inappropriate.

The following data has been extracted from EH40 and OSHA (see below, check for the latest figures on the appropriate website, see Note 2) for some
common toxic gases:

Workplace Exposure Limits:

WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS

OSHA-PELs
(taken from EH40/2013)
SUBSTANCE CHEMICAL FORMULA LTEL (8hr TWA) PPM STEL (15 minute TWA) PPM LTEL (8hr TWA) PPM
Ammonia NH3 25 35 50
Arsine AsH3 0.05 - 0.05
Bromine Br2 0.1 0.2 0.1
Carbon Dioxide CO2 5000 15000 5000
Carbon Monoxide CO 30 200 50
Chlorine Cl2 - 0.5 1
Chlorine Dioxide ClO2 0.1 0.3 0.1
Diborane B2H6 0.1 - 0.1
Ethylene Oxide ETO C2H40 5 - 1
Fluorine F2 1 1 0.1
Germane GeH4 0.2 0.6 -
Hydrogen Cyanide HCN - 10 10
Hydrogen Chloride HCI 1 5 5 ceiling*
Hydrogen Fluoride HF 1.8 3 3
Hydrogen Sulphide H2S 5 10 20 ceiling*
Nitrous Oxide N2O 100 - -
Nitric Oxide NO See note 1 See note 1 25
Nitrogen Dioxide NO2 See note 1 See note 1 5 ceiling*
Ozone O3 - 0.2 0.1
Phosgene COCl2 0.02 0.06 0.1
Phosphine PH3 0.1 0.2 0.3
Silane SiH4 0.5 1 -
Sulphur Dioxide SO2 See note 1 See note 1 5

Note 1: NO, NO2 and SO2 TWA levels were subject to temporary Chemical Hazard Alert Notices (CHAN’s) issued by the UK Health and Safety
Executive. Chemicals Hazard Alert Notices (CHANS) have been suspended. Those seeking advice on substances for which a CHAN had previously
been issued should follow the same approach as they would for any other hazardous substance, e.g. apply the CHIP and COSHH regulations.

Note 2: You must perform your own risk assessment to ensure alarms are set to appropriate levels for your application. EH40 and the risk
assessment process available on the HSE website may be used as a guide to assess your risk. Other local requirements and assessment processes
such as the OSHA guide lines may also be required dependant on your local legislation and practices.

USA - Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA):

In general, PELs refer to substances that may be inhaled, although some can be absorbed through the skin or eyes. The employer is duty bound to
protect the work place and the requirements are very similar to those in the UK as listed above.

Threshold Limit Values (TLVs) are exposure guidelines developed by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH).
They are not legally enforceable, but because they are updated regularly, they represent good professional practice. They are expressed as follows:-

TLV-TWA- Time-Weighted Average: The time-weighted average concentration for a normal 8 hour work day and a 40 hour work week, to which
nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed, day after day, without adverse effect.
TLV-STEL - Short Term Exposure Limit: a 15 minute time-weighted average exposure which should not be exceeded at any time during a work day
even if the 8 hr TWA is within the TLV. Exposures at the STEL should not be repeated more than 4 times a day and there should be at least 60
minutes between successive exposures at the STEL.

*TLV-C- Ceiling: the concentration that should not be exceeded during any part of the working exposure.