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NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION all to uiljom thiw preaenta alfall come. (Greeting: * virtue of the authority vested in me by the Archivist of the United States, I certify on his behalf, seal ofthe National Archives ofthe United States, that the attached reproduction(s) is a true and of documents in his custody. SIGNATURE ,,/ NAME " Janet L. Hargett DATE 3-15-1988 TITLE Chief, General Branch NAME AND ADDRESS OF DEPOSITORY Civil Archives Division The National Archives Washington, D.C. 20409 arch El, ifesE. Mty'SJD & Irbon Baboo, Safety Ihflnaerf Motor Ooopeny, ^mhwr, >A Inolnsadls a report of o Halted inspection of tto tod plant of tto JU^e,Motorftiaing and ftaalt.!nf Gaape&y,.Japll&, lo^ node by ar./F T iarlattlto, of tto 0* 8. Bureau of Mines. This report In uateitted for your confidential Information. I atoll appreciate any suggestions or ooauenta you My taarra and shall to fled to hat* ay ottaotlon oallad to any arrors or alaetatsnsnt of foot. *&- Yours faithfully,' Znolosura So. 4588 to - Dr. larlssttor "W6*XS~=> ^ SCOTT TURNER SOOTT TUBUS, Director. W4C&- Jthl bxpgbt or mat mrarioATicn or tot 1KHM P1CBKB BOCK 0C& PLAIT --.......- Jong. MISSOURI * la 8*ptMbr. 19JI, at t) nfN( of the dafetj h|lnr of the Xa^Le Plohsr Uala| aad SMltlsg Campanj, oa Inspection ata made of Abo etapur'i rook ool plant at Joplin, Klseourl.. this Bloat lo operated la oooaootloa with a load oooltor aad tbs prodaet lo oodo from tv^prodaeto of load smelting. Inaemocb oo the rook aool plant lo oalj op^&ated nben there lo t 8--and for tbo prodaet, considerable delay oao wmsiam ` encountered la assembling and collecting all data on tbo process. It aao doolrod to obtain Information oa tbo dost. lto cheaieal analysis, and to axamln# tbo older man explored at tbo plant ia order to draw i conclusions as to possible harafniasss of tbs dost. , 4 $ .i - ; Bock Wool, Book Vool la made from slag uhlch la basted to a molten liquid and lo hlosa oat of a oaall erlfloo at eonsldarablo prooooro Into tbo stream, breaking tbo molten liquid into Terjr fine I balrllke pertteles. (Mo la blown into a largo room and after 6*1lootlag la quantities It la shoveled into containers for transferring to another balldlng for fabricating. . Tbs material lo made Into sheets, bricks, aad - la combined with asbestos aad used for the purpose of insulating buildings, furnaess, ata. In both tbs buildings in shleh tbo furnace sad the fabricating rooms mere located, large aaoaate of dost were Aeteotod la tbs air. f Pnt Count. Atmospheric Maples were taken in the sizing roots, fabricating department, granulator and furnace rooas. The sample In the furnace room shows 5,000,000 particles under 10 mlcrone; in the sizing roots Vo* 2 samples shows 3,000,000 particles; Vo. 1 sample 10,000,000 particles; the fabricating room shows 1,000,000 particles; end the granulator U,000,000,000 particles, all under 10 microns. Two of these samples were forwarded to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for analysis (furnace roots and mixing room Vo. 2) and the figures given above are the figures obtained at Pittsburgh. 0or own figures show a much higher count. It is possible that some of the particles have gone into solution. Chemical Analysis. Samples of the rock wool wore eent to Pittsbnrgi to Ur. V. A. Selvlg for chemical analysis and the analyses are as follows: #1 PABTIAL 1XALYS1S Per cant 3 .6Lead, Fb---------------------------------------- 1.6 Silica, SlOp------------------------------------ U Aluminum oxide, AlpO,---------------------- 6.3 Perric Oxide, PejjQv-^------------------ Calcium oxide, CaO--------------------- 13.3 #2 Lead, Fb ----------------- Silica, SiOg----------- Aluminum oxide AlpOj ferric oxide fe20^- Calclum oxide CaO - vH.0o*.s5 5*? 31.6 13.3 #3. ^ Lead.^Pk ----------------Silica, 810p------------Alumlnom oxide, A1?0,ferric oxide, fe^of- - Calclum oxide, CaO - - U2.0 6.0 29.2 12.0 -2- % . iW The concluding statement of Mr. Solvig's report la as follows: *As mineral wool is a slag: and has besn thoroughly fused it may be quite irritating if breathed into the throat and lungs in the form of dust. . Physical examinations. On January 6, 1932. four of the employees working at the plant were examined at the clinic to determine ehether or not they show evidence of lung involvement. Three out of the four men examined show a decidedly more fibrosis than normal, and one of the three shows an old tuberculosis. The other men was negative. The histories of the men show that they have not been employed steadily in this plant, but they have been engaged in this work for periods ranging from 9 months to l years, probably at about half time. The man that shows no thickening in the bronchial tubes is the foreman who is probably exposed to the minimum amount of dust. Conclusions drawn. Based on the chemical analysis, quantity of dust, and evidence of such peribronchial thickening in the men who have been exposed, according to the histories, only a relatively short period of time to the dust, it is very likely that the dust is harmful if breathed over a relatively long period of time. This is particularly true in the mixing room where it is stated by the employees that rock wool is mixed with asbestos in various mixtures ranging from 10 to 75 Pr cent. This la a particularly dusty place, and it is now known definitely that asbestos dust is one of the most dangerous dusts to which man is exposed. Vith the combination of asbestos and a fused silica dust, known to be irritating to the lungs, it is reasonable to -3- ooncluds that the nan will get extensive fibrotic changes in a relatively short period of tine. This is particularly true where the rook wool is nixed with asbestos. A study of the X-ray pictures of theee aen flails to rereal any sllloosis at the present tins, but to produce a deoidedly aore fibrosis. than noraal oonditiou In the nines in the Pleher field, the croup shows an average working tiae of six years; la other words, apparently theee ass have contracted the eaae aaoant of fibrosis in 12 aontha or less that eoeurs in the nines of the Pleher field in approxinately six years. Assualng this to be correct, the evidence, while not cosiplete, would load to the conclusion that the dost encountered by theee aen le aore dangerous and will produce lung involveaent in a very nueh shorter period of tine than the dust which le encountered in the Pleher nines. * Past Control. Machines should be introduced to control the aaoant of dost produced at this plant. In the furnace rooa, where the wool la blown into the rooa, a aethod of sucking the dust out of the rooa or an upward systea of rent listIon should be Installed. In the fabricating rooa. it should be as open as possible, and a definite dust controlling systea Installed. In the nixing rooa, it is suggested that a aachine be installed to do this nixing, sacking, etc., slailar to that used hr ceaent industries, and it will not be neceseary for the two aen to be in the rooa. Theee aachlnes are in coaaon use *d could be used here with economical results. a -U- I' United States Department of Commerce BUREAU OF MINES CO-OPERATIVE CLINIC PlCHER, OKLAHOMA March 11, 1932. Dr. B. E. Severe, Chief Surgeon, Bureau of Mines, Washington, D. C. Dear Dr. Sayers: 1 am enclosing copies of the report on the investigation of the Eagle Picher Company's Eock Wool Plant in Joplin, which ire discussed while you were here. When this is finally approved, please forward a copy to Mr. Erbon Mahon, Safety Engineer, Eagle Picher Company, Picher, Oklahoma, at the earliest possible date, as they are very anxious to receive it. Tours respectfully, Surgeon in Charge-