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Health & Safety

Although carbonyl processing has been around for over a century, there are some significant hazards associated with such operations that must be managed with an exceptionally high degree of control. The knowledge built up over this time regarding the effects of nickel (and cobalt) on human health and the environment allows us to provide robust layers of protection to ensure our operations have a minimal detrimental impact. Due to the toxicological effects associated with the exposure to nickel carbonyl and other process gases such as carbon monoxide, the primary focus of the operations team is to ensure containment to prevent the release of any process substance. Secondary focus will be on mitigation to reduce any potential impacts of a release to an absolute minimum. 

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Thirdly, spill recovery and general emergency preparedness will also be a key focus, should the unlikely event of a more significant release occur. The design of the Demonstration Plant has been undertaken in full knowledge of the hazardous nature of the process to be applied. This has led, wherever possible, to the minimization of potential leak points such as flanges and appropriate materials standards have been used for equipment such as piping, vessels, and joints. Similarly, electrical and instrumentation design has been undertaken with safety integrity at the forefront, both in terms of providing redundancy where required, and protection if necessary. Numerous manual alarm functions and automatic shutdown features have been designed into the plant, managed through a Distributed Control System (DCS). The health and wellbeing of our people is, and will always be, the number one priority for Westwin. In recognition of the potential for personnel exposure, despite all the efforts to prevent and mitigate toxic releases, the plant will be widely supplied with respiratory protection equipment. This will take the form of both self-contained breathing apparatus, for use on occasions such as the need to enter the plant to shut the process down in the event of a known leak, and piped breathing air, for use on occasions when work will involve a higher-than-normal probability of toxic gas release. This approach will be supported through the implementation of an occupational exposure monitoring program, whereby operations personnel will have urinary nickel checks made both routinely and when undertaking certain specific higher-risk tasks. Nickel Carbonyl and/or Carbon Monoxide Exposure Although containment is the primary focus, the nature of the process is such that there is a foreseeable risk of release of carbon monoxide or nickel carbonyl. The highly toxic nature of these chemicals means that multiple layers of protection have been used to mitigate the risk. These include: 1. Minimizing the number of potential release points. 2. Having a water bund located below key storage and process vessels to ensure that any liquid carbonyl released is contained (nickel carbonyl is denser than water, so sits below the water layer). 3. Running the plant atmosphere at negative pressure with regular air changes (8 per hour) to dilute and remove any unwanted contaminant gases present. 4. Fixed air monitors are installed throughout the workroom to detect parts per billion (ppb) levels of nickel carbonyl. 5. Personal carbon monoxide monitors, capable of detecting parts per million (ppm) levels of carbon monoxide, required for all on-site personnel. 6. Respiratory protection to provide a physical barrier between any toxic gases present and the individual at risk of exposure. 7. A minor leak protection system is in place to contain minor leaks of nickel carbonyl, venting them outside the process area while a controlled shutdown occurs to facilitate necessary repairs. 8. An occupational monitoring and treatment protocol to check for personnel exposure. Professional medical support has been engaged, so that any personnel with potential for having significant exposure to nickel carbonyl are treated in the correct manner (in the case of higher exposures, via the use of Antabuse, which accelerates the natural excretion of nickel from the body, an approach that has become a standard within the nickel carbonyl industry).

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AEGLs represent threshold exposure limits for the general public and are applicable to emergency exposure periods ranging from 10 minutes (min) to 8 hours (h). AEGL-2 and AEGL-3 levels, and AEGL-1 levels as appropriate, will be developed for each of five exposure periods (10 min, 30 min, 1 h, 4 h, and 8 h) and will be distinguished by varying degrees of severity of toxic effects. It is believed that the recommended exposure levels are applicable to the general population, including infants and children and other individuals who may be sensitive and susceptible. The three AEGLs have been defined as follows:

AEGL-1 is the airborne concentration (expressed as parts per million [ppm] or milligrams per cubic meter [mg/m3]) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience notable discomfort, irritation, or certain asymptomatic nonsensory effects. However, the effects are not disabling and are transient and reversible upon cessation of exposure.

AEGL-2 is the airborne concentration (expressed as ppm or mg/m3) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience irreversible or other serious, long-lasting adverse health effects, or an impaired ability to escape.

AEGL-3 is the airborne concentration (expressed as ppm or mg/m3) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience life-threatening health effects or death.

Implementing over 150yrs experience into our safeguards

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All Hazardous Chemicals at the Plant are Governed by OSHA's HazCom standard.

Hazcom is OSHA's Hazardous Communication Standard

  • Safety Data Sheets

  • Safe handling and disposal of material

  • Identification of physical and health hazards

Make note that Westwin is NOT mining/milling/smelting. We are only refining purchased feed.

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