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Author
World Health Organization
Title
Partially Halogenated Chlorofluorocarbons (Methane Derivatives). Environmental Health Criteria 126.
Coporate
World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
Report
EHC 126
1991
97 p.
Keywords
halons | toxicity | environmental effects | methane | physical properties | chemical properties | exposure | human beings | kinetics | animals | evaluation | health hazards
Identifiers
International Programe on Chemical Safety (IPCS); identify, physical and chemical properties, and analytical methods; sources of human and environmental exposure; environmental transport, distribution, and transformation; environmental levels and human exposure; kinetics and metabolism in laboratory animals and humans; effects of laboratory mammals and in vitro test systems; effects on humans; effects on other organisms in the laboratory and field; evaluation of human health risks and effects on the environment; protection of human health and the environment
Abstract
Chlorofluorcarbons were developed as refrigerants some 60 years ago. However, their application soon significantly diversified, owing totheir properties of non-flammability, chemical and thermal stability, and generally low toxicity. They are now used as blowing agents in foam insulation production, as propellants in aerosols, as cleaning agents of metals and electronic components, and to a lesser extent as chemical intermediates. Their current production is more than 1 000 000 tonnes per year with a market value estimated to be close to US $1.5 billion.