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Article: Words & acronyms.
- Article from:
- Wood Based Panels International
- Article date:
- October 1, 2004
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 Polygon Media Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In the last issue I drew your attention to the International Agency for Research on Cancer's (IARC) reclassification of formaldehyde to a chemical that is carcinogenic to humans. Here are some facts about formaldehyde.
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Formaldehyde is the common name for methanal (not to be confused with methanol). It is a small, organic molecule containing one carbon atom which is attached to two hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom (see right). It is a gas at room temperature with a pungent smell. Consequently, it is normally used either as an aqueous solution (formalin) or in the solid polymerised form, para-formaldehyde.
Formaldehyde is ...