What Are Nitric Acid Esters?

  1. Nitroglycerine (NG)
    • CAS Number: 55-63-0
    • Appearance: Colorless to yellow, oily liquid or pale-yellow crystals.
    • Properties: Highly explosive, decomposes at 50-60°C, and explosively decomposes above 218°C. Slightly soluble in water, it mixes well with acetone, ether, benzene, and other organic solvents. The body absorbs it through the skin.
  2. Ethylene Glycol Dinitrate (EGDN)
    • CAS Number: 628-96-6
    • Appearance: Clear, colorless to yellowish, oily liquid.
    • Properties: Less explosive than NG, highly absorbed through the skin, heavier than water, soluble in alcohol and ether (not in water). Explosive above 114°C.
  3. Propylene Glycol Dinitrate (PGDN)
    • CAS Number: 6423-43-4
    • PGDN Appears as a colorless liquid with a distinctive odor.
    • Properties: Heavier than water, slightly soluble, decomposes above 121°C. Detectable by smell at around 0.2 ppm.
  4. N-Propyl Nitrate
    • CAS Number: 627-13-4
    • N-Propyl Nitrate has a pale-yellow liquid appearance with a sweet, sickening odor.
    • Properties: Its odor is detectable at 50 ppm.
  5. Nitrocellulose
    • CAS Number: 9004-70-0
    • Nitrocellulose is a light fabric material.
    • Properties: It has a variable nitrate content. One nitrate ester per glucose makes it flammable but not explosive; three nitrate esters per glucose make it explosive.

Health Risks and Effects

Exposure to these chemicals, primarily through inhalation or skin contact, can cause:

  • Nitrocellulose causes Headaches and Dizziness from short-term exposure to low concentrations.
  • Skin Irritation and Absorption: Direct skin contact can irritate and allow chemicals to enter the bloodstream.
  • Respiratory Issues: Inhaling vapors can irritate the respiratory system, leading to coughing and shortness of breath.
  • Long-term exposure can lead to severe health problems such as anemia, liver and kidney damage, and potentially cancer.

Safety Tips

  • Protective Gear: Use gloves, masks, and protective clothing when handling these chemicals.
  • Good Ventilation: Ensure workspaces are well-ventilated to reduce inhalation risks.
  • Avoid Skin Contact: Minimize direct contact and wash any exposed skin immediately.
  • Store chemicals safely and out of reach of children.
  • Awareness: Be informed about the substances you work with and follow all safety guidelines.

Occupational Exposures

Mining, demolition, and military applications used most nitro-esters as explosives. They are also used in pharmaceuticals, like nitroglycerine, for heart disease treatment.

  • The oil well drilling industry used nitroglycerine combined with EGDN to make dynamite or guncotton for cordite.
  • EGDN: Used to lower the melting point of nitroglycerine in dynamite, making it safer to handle.
  • PGDN: The main component of Otto Fuel II is a torpedo propellant.
  • N-Propyl Nitrate: Used as a fuel ignition promoter and in rocket fuels.
  • Wood finishing and biochemical labs used Nitrocellulose as a lacquer for blotting.

Important Note

Workers in nitro- and amino-derivative production facilities risk exposure to nitroglycerine and other nitric acid esters. Proper precautions and awareness of the risks can help ensure safety.

Health Effects

  • Vasodilation: Nitro-aliphatic esters cause immediate vasodilation, leading to acute headaches, first noticed by chemical workers producing nitroglycerine.
  • Pharmacological Uses and Risks:
    • Headache Relief and Angina Treatment: Nitroglycerine, initially causing headaches, was later used to ease chest pain (angina).
    • Frostbite Treatment: Frostbite treats frostbites due to its local vasodilatory effect.
    • Mechanism Clarification: Nitric oxide (NO) as the active transmitter explained nitroglycerine’s effects, although sensitivity to NO is temporary due to receptor desensitization.
    • Methemoglobinemia Risk: Biotransformation can lead to methemoglobinemia, where oxygen delivery to tissues is impaired.

Combined Effects with Alcohol

Worsened Headaches and Psychiatric Effects: Alcohol intake combined with nitrate ester exposure can exacerbate headaches and induce temporary psychiatric disorders.

Carcinogenicity

Although NO can generate carcinogenic N-nitrosamines, there is no conclusive evidence that aliphatic nitrate esters are carcinogenic.

Workplace Exposure Symptoms

  • Short-term Effects: Headache, dizziness, nausea, palpitations, and lowered blood pressure due to vasodilation. Workers often develop tolerance, and symptoms disappear after repeated exposures.
  • Compensatory Vasoconstriction: Tolerance leads to vasoconstriction, which can cause angina and sudden death when exposure stops.
  • Dermal Effects are skin irritation and sensitization from contact with NG or EGDN.

Summary

Nitroglycerine quickly penetrates the skin, causing significant circulatory effects. Awareness and precautions are crucial to preventing serious health issues related to nitric acid esters.

Acute Toxic Effects

  • Cardiovascular and Nervous System Impact: Inhalation, ingestion, or skin absorption of nitroglycerine or other nitric acid esters causes vasodilation, affecting the cardiovascular, blood, and nervous systems.
  • Enhanced Effects with Alcohol: Scientists characterized acute poisoning by flushing of the face, headache, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, mental confusion, dizziness, and orthostatic hypotension with reflex tachycardia. Severe poisoning can lead to seizures, convulsions, methemoglobinemia, and cyanosis.

Clinical Manifestations

  • Immediate Symptoms of clinical manifestations are headache, flush, hypotension, reduced blood pressure, post-exposure angina pectoris, and methemoglobinemia. Severe poisoning can lead to confusion, hallucinations, and maniacal manifestations.
  • Mental Disturbances: Drowsiness, stupor, insomnia, fear, and, in severe cases, delirium and convulsions.

Conclusion

Industries must understand and mitigate the risks associated with nitroglycerine and other nitric acid esters. Proper safety measures and awareness can help prevent serious health effects.

Key Actions for Prevention

  • Avoid Dispersion: Avoid dispersion of the compounds in the work environment.
  • Prevent Skin Contact: Prevent skin contact.
  • Use Protective Equipment: Always use personal protective equipment.
  • Pregnancy Precautions: Avoid exposing pregnant workers to these chemicals.

Industries must establish the Exposure limits for workplace atmospheric concentrations to protect workers’ health:

  • Nitroglycerine, EGDN, and PGDN: 0.05 ppm as 8-hour TWA.
  • N-Propyl Nitrate: 25 ppm as 8-hour TWA.

These standards aim to prevent significant changes in cerebral blood vessels during initial exposure, thus avoiding compensatory vasoconstrictive mechanisms that may lead to more severe effects. Workers should consider tolerance to nitroglycerine or other nitric acid esters before abruptly removing a subject from prolonged exposure.

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