UCLA

Mixtures are widely used in both industry and home. Nearly all the technical grade feedstocks of industry are mixtures. Previous studies have indicated that some chemicals in mixtures can permeate through glove materials faster than expected from the pure solvent alone. The hypothesis was that some chemicals in the mixtures will permeate through the disposable nitrile glove faster in the presence of other chemicals. The aims of the present research were (1) to determine if a specific disposable nitrile glove was resistant to chemicals in a mixture, and (2) to determine which chemicals permeated fastest. In the present research, the mixture of 2-butoxyethanol (2-BE; 29.0%), monoethanolamine (MEA; 9.0%), polyethylene glycol nonylphenyl ether (PGNE; 2.9%) and water (59.1%) simulating a common floor stripper used in the workplace was investigated to determine if disposable Lavender nitrile powder-free exam gloves from Kimberly-Clark were resistant. The American Society for Testing and Materials Method F739-12(1) for permeation resistance under continuous contact was used, with samples taken at specific times from the collection side of the permeation cell for later analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The standardized breakthrough times (SBTs) of 2-BE in the mixture were 0-5 minutes for 2-BE and 5-10 minutes for MEA, compared with 5-10 minutes for 2-BE in water and 10-20 minutes for MEA in water. The steady-state permeation rates (SSPRs) of 2-BE and MEA in the mixture were 85�13 and 35�21 g/cm2/min, respectively. The SSPR of 2-BE in water was 269�23 g/cm2/min and the SSPR of MEA in water was 37.5�3.4 g/cm2/min. Chemicals in mixtures did permeate through glove materials faster than expected in the solvent alone. The Lavender disposable nitrile glove is not recommended to resist this mixture by Kimberly-Clark criteria. Some of the limitations in this study were: (1) PGNE is a polymer and could not be detected by GC-MS, so it is difficult to evaluate the effect of PGNE on permeation. (2) The commercial mixture could not be purchased in a small amount. (3) Hand motions could not be taken into account.