TruckandTrackSpring2020

www.truckandtrack.com Spring 2020 Truck and Track 63 DANGEROUS GOODS In this issue, our Dangerous Goods Columnist, Ali Karim FRSC FCILT, gives consideration to the importance of understanding the properties of ADR / IMDG Class 2 Oxygen [and its compounds within Class 5.1 Oxidising Agents and Class 5.2 Organic Peroxides] within the Dangerous Goods Supply Chain, as well as in the Non-ADR regulated carriage of cleaning chemicals and foodstuffs [both ambient and refrigerated]. O 2 is essential to life, but is an invisible hazard for the untrained operator. It can also shorten the shelf-life of packaged foodstuffs warehoused and transported within the non-ADR supply- chain. It should also be noted that Oxygen and its compounds are critical in combatting the emergence of Viruses such as COVID-19, the coronavirus. Context There is a yin and yang , with Oxygen, as it is essential for life on Earth, but it has a darker side: too low or too high a concentration of O 2 , and it becomes a danger to life. Its compounds handled by an untrained operator or the nefarious can lead to a tragic incident. The term Oxidising Agent is derived from the Gas ‘Oxygen’ which has a rich history, including lending its name to Great Britain’s mighty Brinsworth Oxygen Company , also known as British Oxygen Company [BOC], nowpart of the global Linde-Praxair conglomerate. Today’s world faces challenges. We have an aging population at risk from the emergence of respiratory diseases from air-borne pollutants, asthma, and smoke inhalation which can result in lung diseases including COPD [Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, a term that includes Bronchitis and Emphysema, among other medical conditions]. Oxygen is critical in both treating and managing such conditions. With the increase in human, animal and agricultural diseases from bacterial, viral and sanitation / janitorial issues [including shared swimming baths]; the use of 5.1 Oxidising Agents and 5.2 Organic Peroxides is growingmarkedly. They have become heavily deployed as disinfectants and anti-bacterial/viral agents on farms, kitchens, toilets, places of mass transit as well as our homes and offices and most recently sprayed in the air aroundWuhan, the Hubei province of China as a countermeasure against Coronavirus COVID-19. The Ubiquity of Oxygen In a former life [after Gas and Equipment Ltd was bought by Linde AG], I recall sitting with colleagues at a Board-Meeting in Höllriegelskreuth outside the capital of Bavaria [Munich]. We were discussing special gases production and their logistics throughout Linde AG’s European subsidiaries. The head of Linde Special Gases Europe in the early 1990s was the renowned Dr Groll. It was a lively [if somewhat formal], gathering of senior Chemists and Engineers. He closed the meeting with a question. “What is the most hazardous gas we manufacture and distribute in Europe?” I listened as my colleagues breathlessly named problematic gases, such as Silicon Tetrahydride, Diborane, Arsine, Phosphine, Methyl Bromide, Fluorine and an array of highly unstable organometallics used in Semiconductor Fabrication such as WF6 Tungsten Hexafluoride et al. He looked around the table and focused his steely Teutonic gaze toward me. “Herr Karim, you have been unusually quiet,” he said. Everyone laughed. “Oxygen,” I said, matching his gaze. The boardroom erupted in laughter; good natured but mocking. Dr Groll stood up from the table raising his arms to silence the ridicule directed at me. “A typical British response. Always different to the rest of Europe. But Karim is correct,” He said, turning to the smirking faces arrayed across the oval table. “The gases you all mentioned are terrible indeed if not handled carefully; but we manufacture, store and transport the gases you all named in small volumes. The cylinder and valve designs have safety as a key feature. Our Production Operators, Depot and Driving staff are well trained, as are the end-users; Professionals. As Karim indicates, there is a special place for Oxygen when we consider safety, due to the high volumes we produce and distribute. Within its ubiquity comes compliancy because it surrounds us in the Air, and essential for life; but in LOX* and GOX* there also lies danger and you must ensure your managers and their staff, and our end- users treat this Liquid, and this Gas with the utmost respect. Thank you, Herr Karim because sometimes we can overlook the obvious.” No one laughed at me again. In prefacing this column, I am not only recalling a memory of a day now passed [ but one strangely prescient when contrasted against the UK’s exit from the European Union ]; but alsowriting a little about Oxygen to help others, as Dr Groll instructed – “because in ubiquity can lie compliancy”. *LOX = Liquid Oxygen *GOX = Compressed Gaseous Oxygen Background Oxygen is a member of the chalcogen group [aka the Oxygen Family] in the periodic table, a highly reactive non-metal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as well as with other compounds. By mass, oxygen is the third-most abundant element in the universe, after hydrogen and helium. At standard temperature and pressure, two atoms of the element bind Oxygen, Oxidising Agents & Organic Peroxides in the Supply Chain by Ali Karim Ali Karim LOADS MORE FOR THE PALLET NETWORKS 01543 420 121 www.deker.co.uk