I have read numerous articles online advising against nitrile gloves when working with MEK but nothing substantiated. Does anyone have any experience of which gloves are best and maybe reference to a British Standard? Many Thanks

As per Ansell, their Barrier Gloves have a protection index of 6 with a theoretial breakthrough time of more than 480 minutes. http://industrialcatalogue.ansell.eu/barrier However, these are 5 layer laminated glove and need to be worn as per instructions They are also expensive, around £ 10 and single use!

With regard to performance achieved under actual working use: Some years ago I conducted a study in conjunction with Sunderland University where we used detection pads underneath protective gloves to determine the real performance, i.e. permeation breakthrough time. The result showed that the time according to EN374-3 bore little resemblance to that achieved in practice and that it was the nature of the task performed whilst wearing the gloves that was the most critical factor. As an example, a nitrile glove was being used with xylene. Manufacturer's stated permeation breakthrough time according to EN374-3 was 36 minutes. In one task there was no breakthrough for 2 hours, in another permeation breakthrough occurred in just 5 minutes! Another manufacturer showed that a glove offered >240 minutes for each of toluene and MEK, but only 9 minutes when the two chemicals were mixed 1:1. Many factors will affect glove performance, such as temperature, flexing, combinations of chemicals, abrasion, mixtures, etc. Identifying what can be achieved in practice is often extremely difficult. I have recommended the Ansell Barrier to several clients, but always with the condition that they are worn underneath a nitrile/rubber glove as the Barrier is fragile and easily damaged. It also offers poor dexterity unless underneath another glove. As stated, they are expensive. Chris