Lead Burns......certain poisoning?

[Fish_N_Russ]

I got some very bad lead burns last week while being stupid and not wearing a long sleeved shirt......so my question is, when lead causes a bad burn does that mean you are going to have some lead poisoning? Or is there very much absorption though the skin with molten lead? Just curious.....:confused:

[monadnock#5]

From what I understand, lead oxide can absorb through the skin. The nice fresh stuff you got on you won't get into your blood stream, it wasn't in contact long enough.

You say the burns are "very bad". Did you have the doc take a look at it? If not, you need to be careful that the wound doesn't get infected.

I'm sorry for your misfortune and I hope you get well soon.

[Morgan Astorbilt]

FYI, lead oxide(litharge) is water soluble, and is only formed, as are "lead fumes", under very high heat(metal glows red), so don't worry about it. The Greenies have got everybody worrying unnecessarily.
Morgan

[Tom Herman]

To the tune of 1.7 milligrams per 100 milli-liters of water at 77 degrees Fahrenheit.
So for all practical purposes, it's insoluble.
Small particles of a substance are more easily absorbed than big sprays of metal, so other than the burns, you should be OK.
As far as it forming (PbO), it would be interesting to study the corrosion mechanism of lead at room temperature. Knowing the color of Litharge, maybe some forms at room temp, but my suspicions are that most lead corrosion is some mechanism of acid reaction, possibly with Carbonic Acid (dissolved CO2 gas), forming lead carbonate, as most of the residues I see on recovered, long buried lead are white or off white.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom


FYI, lead oxide(litharge) is water soluble, and is only formed, as are "lead fumes", under very high heat(metal glows red), so don't worry about it. The Greenies have got everybody worrying unnecessarily.
Morgan

[Morgan Astorbilt]

To the tune of 1.7 milligrams per 100 milli-liters of water at 77 degrees Fahrenheit.
So for all practical purposes, it's insoluble.
Small particles of a substance are more easily absorbed than big sprays of metal, so other than the burns, you should be OK.
As far as it forming (PbO), it would be interesting to study the corrosion mechanism of lead at room temperature. Knowing the color of Litharge, maybe some forms at room temp, but my suspicions are that most lead corrosion is some mechanism of acid reaction, possibly with Carbonic Acid (dissolved CO2 gas), forming lead carbonate, as most of the residues I see on recovered, long buried lead are white or off white.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom

Tom, I used to use Litharge and Glycerin cement to seal threads on oxygen and acetylene regulators, when I repaired them. If memory serves, it was water soluble. Maybe the litharge was only suspended in the glycerin, but it dried hard, and the wet cement was easily washed off with water. I believe it's still used for this purpose.
Morgan

[rhead]

It is soluble in water i even a small amount of sodium hydroxide is also in the water.Ammonium cloride and calcium cloride will also increase the solubility.
1.7 mg per 100 cc water at 20 deg C in pure water. (Handbook of Physics and Chemistry 44th edition)
Melted lead on the skin caused thermal damage only, but plenty of that if enough gets there. Hope you wern't burned badly.

[Tom Herman]

Solubility mechanisms are fascinating!
I think the Litharge/Sodium Hydroxide mixture actually forms Sodium Hydroxy-Plumbate. So it's actually reacting instead of going into solution.

Happy Shootin'! -Tom


It is soluble in water i even a small amount of sodium hydroxide is also in the water.Ammonium cloride and calcium cloride will also increase the solubility.
1.7 mg per 100 cc water at 20 deg C in pure water. (Handbook of Physics and Chemistry 44th edition)
Melted lead on the skin caused thermal damage only, but plenty of that if enough gets there. Hope you wern't burned badly.

[rhead]

The reaction is more complex than that. More litharge will go into the solution than can be accountedfor by chemical reactions. Spectrial analysis of the solution shows no evidence of chemicall bonding.
We use it as a go nogo test for low levels of mercaptians in gasoline and diesel. If mercaptians and elemental sulfur are both present the litharge will form a visible precipitant. I used to be used for sulfur removal from natural gas and other light hydrocarbons. (Bender Process) It may be still in use but I do not know of any units in use.

[Morgan Astorbilt]

The amount of knowledge being shared by the posters on these boards never ceases to amaze me. What did we ever do before the internet?:>)
Morgan

[wiljen]

If you really want to make a lead compound that will absorb through the skin, 50% Strong Hydrogen peroxide and 50% white vinegar (or 6% Acetic Acid) mixed with lead will make about as readily absorbed a compound as lead will produce (lead acetate). They used to recommend this combination to clean out sound suppressors and it does work for that. It just leaves you with a toxic mess to dispose of very carefully.



Note: The above post is NOT a recommendation to use this to clean barrels, too strong a mixture and you corrode the steels. Also the EPA frowns on disposing of the resultant compounds by anyone other than a registered waste management agency.

[Tom Herman]

The Romans used to add it to wine to sweeten it, oblivious to its poisonous properties.
Now I'll have to look up the Bender process! Thanks for the information!
And Morgan, it would appear that Litharge is a very reactive oxide, easily combining with organic materials such as your Glycerine that you use to seal joints.
Yes, the knowledge here on the boards is amazing!

Happy Shootin'! -Tom

[blackthorn]

Wijen said "It just leaves you with a toxic mess to dispose of very carefully".

How is lead acetate disposed of safely??? Inquiring minds want to know.

[rhead]

You could reduce it back to lead by heating it with an exess of charcoal. I think that the yankee government wants it reacted with sodium hydroxide to precipitate the less reactive lead hydroxide from the solution before shippig to a disposal site where it will wind up being reduced. (That is from memory I am not certian of the current recomendation.)
There are other more entertaining reactions but they definately are not for amatures.

[dominicfortune00]

Wonder if you could add it to the melting pot, flux with wood, and have it end back up as pure lead?