In Breslau in 1902 five workmen became affected, of whom three died from inhalation of arseniuretted hydrogen gas in filling toy balloons.[1]
Further, use of hydrogen in lead burning may expose to risk, and also preparation of zinc chloride flux.
Of thirty-nine recorded cases of arseniuretted hydrogen poisoning twelve were chemists, eleven workers filling toy balloons, seven aniline workers, five lead smelters, three balloonists, and in one the origin could not be traced. Nineteen of these proved fatal within from three to twenty-four days.[2]
Cases are recorded (1) in the reduction of nitroso-methylaniline with zinc and hydrochloric acid; (2) in the preparation of zinc chloride from zinc ashes and hydrochloric acid; (3) from manufacture of zinc sulphate from crude sulphuric acid and zinc dust; (4) in spelter works in the refining of silver from the zinc crust with impure hydrochloric acid; and (5) in the formation room of accumulator factories.
The English factory inspectors’ report describes in 1906 occurrence of three cases in an electrolytic process for the recovery of copper in which the copper dissolved in sulphuric acid was deposited at the cathode, and hydrogen at the lead anode. In the 1907 report mention is made of two cases, one affecting a chemist separating bismuth from a solution of bismuth chloride in hydrochloric acid, and the other (which proved fatal) a man who had cleaned a vitriol tank.
The poisoning resulting from ferro-silicon is in part referable to development of arseniuretted hydrogen gas.
ANTIMONY
It seems doubtful if industrial poisoning can really be traced to antimony or its compounds; generally the arsenic present with the antimony is at fault. Erben[1] considers that industrial antimony poisoning occurs among workmen employed in smelting antimony alloys in making tartar emetic through inhalation of fumes of oxide of antimony.
A case is cited of a workman in Hamburg engaged in pulverising pure antimony who was attacked with vomiting which lasted for several days, and the inspector of factories noted epistaxis (nose bleeding) and vomiting as following on the crushing of antimony ore.