Welding "smoke" is a mixture of very fine particles and gases. This "smoke" can contain, such materials as chromium, nickel, arsenic, asbestos, manganese, silica, beryllium, cadmium, nitrogen oxides, phosgene, acrolein, fluorine compounds, carbon monoxide, cobalt, copper, lead, ozone, selenium, and zinc and they can be extremely toxic. Generally, welding fumes and gases come from the base material being welded or the filler material, but can also come from the paint and other materials on the metal being welded. Chemical reactions can also occur from the heat and even the arc light. These reactants can also be toxic.
Health effects of welding exposures can be difficult to list. The "smoke" may contain materials not listed or assumed. The individual components of
wholesale butt fusion welding machine smoke can affect just about any part of the body, including the lungs, heart, kidneys, and central nervous system.
Exposure to metal fumes such as zinc, magnesium, copper, and copper oxide can cause metal fume fever. Symptoms of metal fume fever may occur 4 to 12 hours after exposure, and include chills, thirst, fever, muscle ache, chest soreness, coughing, wheezing, fatigue, nausea, and a metallic taste in the mouth and usually lasts a short term.
Some components of welding fumes, such as cadmium, can be fatal in a short time. Secondary gases given off by the welding process can also be extremely dangerous. Ultraviolet radiation from the welding arc reacts with oxygen and nitrogen and produces ozone and nitrogen oxides. These gases are deadly at high doses, and can also cause irritation of the nose and throat and serious lung disease.
Another reaction from the ultraviolet arc is a gas produced from chlorinated hydrocarbon solvents; this gas is called phosgene gas and even a very small amount of phosgene may be deadly.
Studies have shown that welders have an increased risk of lung cancer, and possibly cancer of the larynx and urinary tract. This risk comes from the cancer-causing agents such as cadmium, nickel, beryllium, chromium, and arsenic.
