What to do if you inhale sulfur dioxide

If you inhale sulfur dioxide into your body, you must take emergency measures. At this time, you will not feel very serious symptoms immediately, but as time goes by, it will pose a considerable threat to your life. Therefore, for your own safety, you still need to go to the hospital for emergency treatment as soon as possible, so as to prevent yourself from having more sequelae.

Personal protection: First of all, education on labor protection and safe production should be strengthened. Operators can moisten several layers of gauze with saturated sodium carbonate solution and glycerin and then sandwich them in a gauze mask to absorb SO2. You should rinse your mouth with 2% sodium carbonate solution before and after work.

Conventional method for treating SO2: While paying attention to the personal protection of workers, effective measures should be taken to treat SO2 flue gas. Since the 1950s, China has carried out a series of experimental research on the recovery and utilization of low-concentration SO2 in non-ferrous smelting flue gas, and has made certain progress.

Imidazole method: The imiazole method is to treat SO2 by absorbing SO2 with ammonia water, and imiazole is a by-product. Although the sulfite method technology is relatively mature, the by-product produced is liquid sulfite, which is difficult to store and transport. It is only suitable for small smelters with ammonia sources.

Sodium sulfite method: Small and medium-sized smelters can use the sodium sulfite method for flue gas desulfurization. The sodium sulfite method uses alkali or pure alkali to absorb SO2 and produce sodium sulfite as a by-product. For example, the Shanghai smelter uses this method to treat flue gas. The sodium sulfite method has simple process, convenient operation, small system resistance, and low investment and operating costs. The desulfurization efficiency is as high as about 95%. However, it requires consumption of pure alkali and alkali. Each ton of anhydrous sodium sulfite consumes 0.8 t of pure alkali and 0.1 t of alkali. The by-product sodium sulfite has limited uses and is therefore not widely used.

Zinc oxide method: For lead and zinc smelters, the zinc oxide method can be used to treat SO2. For example, the Fourth Smelter of Hunan Shuikoushan Mining Bureau adopts this method. The zinc oxide method uses zinc oxide as the absorbent, and all the generated zinc sulfite slag is returned to the zinc concentrate boiling furnace for roasting, and the decomposed SO2 gas can be used to produce concentrated SO2.

Skin contact: Take off contaminated clothes immediately and rinse with plenty of running water. Seek medical attention.

Eye contact: Lift the eyelids and rinse with running water or saline. Seek medical attention.

Inhalation: Move quickly away from the scene to fresh air. Keep the airways open. If breathing is difficult, give oxygen. If breathing stops, perform artificial respiration immediately. Seek medical attention. [3]

If poisoning occurs, the patient should be immediately moved to a place with fresh air, tight clothes should be loosened, oxygen should be quickly inhaled, eyes and nasal cavity should be rinsed, and mouth should be gargled with 2% soda solution. If it splashes into eyes accidentally, rinse immediately with plenty of warm water. Severe cases should be sent to hospital for treatment