Do Vinyl Gloves Protect Against Chemicals

Vinyl gloves became an alternate option for people with latex allergies in the healthcare and industrial industry.

Do vinyl gloves protect against chemicals. Natural rubber or latex gloves are the most common type of glove used in occupational settings. Glove materials are evaluated on three criteria when exposed to chemicals. Cynthia weston associate dean for clinical and outreach affairs at the college of nursing at texas a m university in college station adds to the list of gloves to avoid. A 10 gauge glove equals 10 mils or 0 010 inches.

This chemical resistance chart is for advisory use only. Chemical resistant glove materials include latex leather nitrile goatskin vinyl neoprene and other manufactured materials for a variety of applications. Since then vinyl gloves have been a quality choice. Cloth or other porous.

Nitrile gloves have superior chemical resistance against common chemicals as well as many specialty chemicals such as water treatment chemicals or industrial cleaning compounds understanding the conditions of glove use with any type of glove the length of exposure and concentration of the chemical may determine how resistant it is. However latex gloves are not very chemical resistant and are mainly used in the food and the medical industry because they don t protect well against bloodborne pathogens. Glove manufacturers generally state that doubling the thickness of a glove quadruples the breakthrough time of the chemical. It is strongly advised that on site testing of all gloves is important to determining safe usage.

Conditions exposure times chemical concentrations and residues may effect glove performance. Due to the molecular structure of vinyl disposable gloves there are associated risks that limit their performance and affect barrier protection. Nitrile chemical resistant gloves for example can provide protection from dirt. Glove thickness is stated in either mils or gauge.

Vinyl is also not very form fitting compared to latex or nitrile giving the wearer limited dexterity and a higher chance that the glove with catch and tear. The effect of this is two fold. These gloves are intended to be used only as a physical barrier against brief contact with chemicals and they need to be removed and discarded immediately after they become contaminated. Studies have highlighted the lack of cross linking of pvc molecules causing them to separate when flexed or stretched.

The drawbacks of vinyl are it offers little protection from chemicals and micro organisms but makes these gloves perfect for handling non hazardous materials and chemicals.