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Article: TOXIC BERYLLIUM: New Solutions for a Chronic Problem.
- Article from:
- Environmental Health Perspectives
- Article date:
- February 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. 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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The element beryllium was discovered more than 200 years ago, but it was not until 1927 that the first beryllium-containing materials were produced, and not until the 1940s--driven by the World War II demand for beryllium-copper alloys for use in weapons, radar, and other applications--that they were produced in significant quantities. Beryllium manufacturing during World War II and the Cold War that followed it resulted in the exposure of thousands of workers to beryllium dust, resulting in untold numbers of serious health effects including respiratory ailments, cancers, and death. Where once it was confined largely to defense applications, beryllium is now found in ...