3.5.14
Apple urged to stop using harmful chemicals in its factories
Labour and eco groups call for chemical safety in manufacturing at Apple
factories in China, and say Samsung, Dell and HP should change too.
“Together with Green America, we demand that Apple takes responsibility and removes chemicals like the solvents n-hexane and the carcinogen benzene, which is known to cause leukaemia providing its workers with a legal standard of welfare,” Kevin Slaten, programme co-ordinator at China Labor Watch.
The solvent n-hexane is used to clean electronic displays, including Apple’s iPhone. It is used rather than conventional solvents such as isopropanol or other alcohols because it evaporates around three times faster: that means washed screens are dry more quickly, so workers can clean more of them in a given period. But exposure can cause nerve damage and even paralysis. N-hexane has been blamed for a number of poisoning episodes at iPhone manufacturing plants in China.
Benzene is used as a cleaning and coating agent for electronic components. But it is also a carcinogen which can cause reproductive abnormalities and leukemia.
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“Together with Green America, we demand that Apple takes responsibility and removes chemicals like the solvents n-hexane and the carcinogen benzene, which is known to cause leukaemia providing its workers with a legal standard of welfare,” Kevin Slaten, programme co-ordinator at China Labor Watch.
The solvent n-hexane is used to clean electronic displays, including Apple’s iPhone. It is used rather than conventional solvents such as isopropanol or other alcohols because it evaporates around three times faster: that means washed screens are dry more quickly, so workers can clean more of them in a given period. But exposure can cause nerve damage and even paralysis. N-hexane has been blamed for a number of poisoning episodes at iPhone manufacturing plants in China.
Benzene is used as a cleaning and coating agent for electronic components. But it is also a carcinogen which can cause reproductive abnormalities and leukemia.
More
# posted by claus_kirche @ 21:05 
