# NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards
Welding fumes | CAS
| RTECS ZC2550000
Synonyms & Trade Names Synonyms vary depending upon the specific component of the welding fumes. | DOT ID & Guide
Exposure Limits | NIOSH REL: Ca See Appendix A
OSHA PEL†: none
IDLH Ca [N.D.] | Conversion
Physical Description Fumes generated by the process of joining or cutting pieces of metal by heat, pressure, or both.
Properties vary depending upon the specific component of the welding fumes. |  |  |
Incompatibilities & Reactivities Varies
Measurement Methods NIOSH 7300
Personal Protection & Sanitation Skin: No recommendation Eyes: No recommendation Wash skin: No recommendation Remove: No recommendation Change: No recommendation | First Aid (See procedures) Eye: Irrigate immediately Skin: Soap wash Breathing: Respiratory support
Respirator Recommendations NIOSH At concentrations above the NIOSH REL, or where there is no REL, at any detectable concentration: (APF = 10,000) Any self-contained breathing apparatus that has a full facepiece and is operated in a pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode/(APF = 10,000) Any supplied-air respirator that has a full facepiece and is operated in a pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode in combination with an auxiliary self-contained positive-pressure breathing apparatus Escape: (APF = 50) Any air-purifying, full-facepiece respirator (gas mask) with a chin-style, front- or back-mounted organic vapor canister having a high-efficiency particulate filter/Any appropriate escape-type, self-contained breathing apparatus
Exposure Routes inhalation, skin and/or eye contact
Symptoms Symptoms vary depending upon the specific component of the welding fumes; metal fume fever: flu-like symptoms, dyspnea (breathing difficulty), cough, muscle pain, fever, chills; interstitial pneumonitis; [potential occupational carcinogen]
Target Organs Eyes, skin, respiratory system, central nervous system Cancer Site [lung cancer]
See also: INTRODUCTION