I'm surprised Formaldehyde (AKA: Methylene Oxide) is not listed as
hazardous material because it has been assigned the EPA Hazardous Waste
I.D. #U122, which means "correct" disposal is necessary.
If I'm not mistaken, Formaldehyde's hazardous listing is dependent on
individual State regulations (based on the assigned Federal Standard as
minimum), and the quantity being shipped. Several of the alt-process
chemicals are (probably) shipped as hazardous due to their possible
reactivity with other material. For example, Formaldehyde, if I remember
correctly, reacts violently (explosively!) with potassium permanganate.
-Rod
BTW - Our last order for the studio/lab totaled $155 and change, $25 of
that was for shipping & hazardous material charges. The order consisted of
Collodion, Spray Dried Egg Albumen and <back-orderd> Ammonium Iodide that
wasn't even shipped. Total weight around 6lbs., coming from about 650 miles
from here. Normal UPS for the weight would have been about $6. Our supplier
says he isn't making any money on the shipping either!
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* Roderick Hook *
* PhotoArchivist & Conservator *
* imagwkrs@midcoast.com *
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