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#1 Posted : 04 October 2000 10:43:00(UTC)
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Posted By Sarah J Shaw Has anyone done a risk assessment for the use of dry ice in packing goods for dispatch, or any dry ice handling. We have recently extended a product range to include items which need to kept cold during transit. At present we are using approx 5kgs every 2 days. This is kept in a normal fridge (I have prohibited its storage within our walk in fridge, as the volume is great enough to fill the fridge with CO2 if it fumed off). The Dry Ice supplier states that it is not CHIP classified, but it is classified under ADR for transport purposes. We are asking the supplier for more info, but does anyone have experience of handling/packing with this material? Also would it be permissable to allow any excess material to be disposed of by leaving it outside? Sarah J Shaw EHS Manager Fisher Scientific UK Ltd, Loughborough 01509 555051
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#2 Posted : 05 October 2000 09:56:00(UTC)
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Posted By Diane Warne Sarah, I have had some experience of packing items for transit in dry ice, some time ago now. Presumably you are packing the goods in polyboxes. You need to ensure there is not a large air space inside the package - it's a good idea to put some extra polystyrene or matting in the box to reduce the volume, so you don't have to use so much dry ice (saves carriage costs too!) The package should not be air tight - carbon dioxide gas needs to be allowed to escape as the package warms up. Hazards from handling it are risk of cold burn and risk of asphyxiation if a large quantity sublimes into gas. You are right to forbid storage in a walk-in fridge or any other confined space. Areas in which it is handled must be well-ventilated. Handlers should wear eye protection and protective gloves (cryogloves.) Allowing excess to sublime off indoors in a well-ventilated area might be safer than leaving it outdoors, unless you are sure that no-one could come into contact with it outside (curious passers-by?) You need to be sure that the carriers you are using are happy with your arrangements - they used to be a bit wary of dry ice. Finally you may wish to consider using a datalogger to record temperatures inside the package during transport of a test package - this will show you whether your packing & transport procedures are actually keeping the contents at the correct temperature. Email me if you want to discuss further. Regards Diane Warne
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#3 Posted : 06 October 2000 17:12:00(UTC)
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Posted By Sarah J Shaw Diane, Thanks that is very helpful. We have not tested the pack in transit. It will be interesting to validate the packaging method. Sarah
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