Petroleum Products Personified!

As this Blog is being written millions of gallons of oil are being pumped into the Gulf of Mexico contaminating the Gulf states shore lines. Petroleum products are the life blood of an industrial world, but in this case the patient is dying.

Petroleum or oil in its natural form is composed of a number of chemicals including alkanes, cyclokanes, aromatic hydrocarbons, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur. It also contains a small amount of copper, nickel and vanadium. If these chemicals are ingested or inhaled even in small quantities the health issues are severe.

This is evident when you are filling up your car with gasoline, a by-product of petroleum. When you get too close to the nozzle as it delivers the gas to your tank, you automatically stop breathing when you get a whiff of the odor from the gas. Your body is telling you not to breathe these fumes.

Aside from the strong “take your breath away” odor, most petroleum products are highly flammable. This in one of the reasons why the labels on these petroleum products packaging always tells you to keep it away from any open flame. Yet, many people store petroleum based products in their basement or garage next to the Heating/Cooling unit.  Aside from the potential fire hazard any fumes leaking from the cans or containers will be pulled into the air handler of the heating/cooling system and distributed throughout the house.

Even small amounts of these chemicals inhaled over time can cause severe health issues for individuals. Children are even more susceptible to being affected by the vapors from these products. Their lungs are not fully developed and therefore can be more quickly affected by even small exposures only a few times.

Keeping the petroleum products, solvents, paint thinners, paint, etc. in a cool, dry, out of the way storage area is the best solution to eliminating these problems.  It is essential that you always wear a mask or respirator when handling any petroleum product for long periods of time and make sure the area in which you are using it is well ventillated.

Pure Air Systems has been manufacturing HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems since 1985 and has a vast amount of experience in reducing and removing odors and gases from petroleum based products. For more information on the complete line of carbon based products please go to our website at:  www.pureairsystems.com

Open Post