How to choose the right industrial chemical resistant gloves?

Introduction

Gloves are hand protection products subdivided by the PPE industry. In daily life or work, hands are often in contact with liquid with unknown composition. In general, a pair of gloves that can insulate the liquid can greatly protect the hands.

There are many kinds of gloves that can isolate liquids on the market. These gloves with different shapes and materials have their own characteristics. So how can we choose the most suitable hand from these gloves? (In fact, gloves should be used to protect hands when handling some solid chemicals.)

Therefore, here we hope to answer for you which gloves are the right choice in chemical protection. Physical protection will not be discussed here.

What is the chemical resistance performance of gloves?

The chemical protection performance of gloves can be understood as the stability of gloves of a certain material after contact with specific chemicals. The stronger the stability, the higher the protection level. We can understand the stability of chemical protective gloves from three dimensions: Breakthrough time, Degradation and Permeability.

Breakthrough time. This is the time taken after the initial contact test of the glove inner surface with the chemical substance. For example, if a specific chemical substance contacts the gloves for 60 minutes, after 60 minutes, if the substance is not detected on the other side of the gloves, it means that the breakthrough time is>60 minutes.

Degree of degradation. The change of properties of gloves after contact with chemicals, such as swelling, softening, shrinkage and cracking, means that the gloves are not applicable. However, if there is little or no degradation after contact, it can be considered that the glove grade is “E” excellent.

Permeability. Permeability is the value that expresses the reaction rate between glove material and chemical substances. Performance is usually measured in three ways. The first is glove surface absorption. The second is glove surface adhesion. The third is the diffusion of chemicals through materials.

How to preliminarily evaluate the chemical protection performance of gloves?

Material and thickness. For the selection of gloves to protect against chemicals, people usually use latex or synthetic rubber gloves. Due to the three stability standards, the chemical protection performance is strongly related to the glove material and thickness. Different materials determine which chemicals can be protected by gloves. The thickness also determines the level of protection.

What are the materials for making chemical resistant gloves?

Common materials for manufacturing chemical resistant gloves include but are not limited to: PVC, latex, nitrile rubber, neoprene, butyl and Viton.

PVC gloves. These kinds of gloves often have a good cost performance ratio, so they are favored by customers. PVC gloves are suitable for use in acid and alkali chemicals. They are also a good choice for hydraulic oil, aromatic solvent or alcohol. However, PVC gloves are not suitable for the protection of organic solvents. Also try not to use it in a high temperature environment.

Latex industrial gloves. These gloves usually have a good protection against aqueous chemical solutions. Such as nitric acid, sulfuric acid, methanol, formaldehyde, sodium hydroxide, acetic acid. They are comfortable to wear, and their rich softness allows users to operate the appliances better. Generally, they also have a certain degree of wear resistance and cutting resistance. However, latex gloves are not suitable for mineral solutions or some oils.

Nitrile rubber gloves. Nitrile combines the advantages of latex and PVC to a certain extent. If you need to be free from solvent, alkali, diluent, and ester, nitrile rubber gloves are a good choice. Generally, they are widely used in the application of grease and varnish.

Neoprene gloves. Manufacturers producing such gloves usually need to have certain qualifications, because the pollution emissions generated in the production process need to be well treated. Neoprene gloves are ideal for petroleum products, fats or fuels. At the same time, it also has good protection against acid and alkali. The disadvantage of this type of gloves is that the surface will become smooth and lose grip after being wet.

Butyl rubber gloves. Butyl rubber gloves have a dense molecular structure, which can protect esters, ketones, aldehydes and alcohols. Butyl is also an insulating agent for chemical gasses, and it is usually used in the military field in some specific areas.

Viton gloves. Viton is a kind of fluororubber, which has extremely high chemical protection performance and heat resistance. Commonly used in the protection of benzene, toluene and PCB (polychlorinated biphenyls). However, due to the high price of this material, it is usually only used in the aviation industry or some special industries.

What is the EN 374 certification standard?

We choose the appropriate chemical resistant gloves from a wide range of gloves. You can check whether they have the EN-374 logo through the glove packaging or logo. EN-374 is a chemical resistant gloves standard designated by the European Union. It tests the reaction of gloves to various chemicals, and also considers the permeability, penetration time, shrinkage and other indicators. The indicator is divided into five parts:

EN 374 – 1: Protective gloves for chemicals and microorganisms

EN 374 – 2: Determination of resistance to penetration

EN 374 – 3: Determination of resistance to penetration of chemicals (replaced by EN 16,523)

EN 374 – 4: Determination of resistance to degradation of chemicals

EN 374 – 5: Terminology and performance requirements for microbiological risks

EN 374 – 1 will test chemical resistant gloves for 18 different chemicals. At the end of the test, the third-party evaluation agency will grant the gloves A, B or C certification based on their resistance to chemicals. Finally, the organization will award a mark according to the standard, and the manufacturer needs to print the mark on the back of the gloves. Consumers can quickly distinguish the type of protection gloves from the signs.

Type A: Protective gloves shall be resistant to penetration for at least 30 minutes, with at least six test chemicals

Type B: Protective gloves shall be resistant to penetration for at least 30 minutes and contain at least three test chemicals

Type C: protective gloves shall be resistant to penetration for at least 10 minutes, and at least one test chemical shall be used

EN374-2 is used to determine the resistance of gloves to liquid or gas penetration.

EN 374 – 2:1 – Waterproofing

EN 374 – 2:2 – Waterproofing/anti microbial

EN 374 – 2:3 – Waterproofing/anti microbial

EN374-3 is used to detect the permeability of chemicals and microorganisms, which has been replaced by EN 16523-1.

EN374-4 is used to test the degradation of chemical resistant gloves after contact with chemicals, mainly to evaluate the time required for gloves degradation.

EN374-5 is used to test whether chemical resistant gloves can resist microbial risks. One is to designate the glove symbol with fungus and bacteria resistance. The other is the identification symbol with the risk of resisting fungi, bacteria and viruses.

Symbol Designating Gloves with Fungi and Bacteria Resistance

Symbol Designating Gloves with Fungi, Bacteria and Viral Risks

Which industries are suitable for PVC chemical resistant gloves?

PVC gloves have excellent water tightness, air tightness and oil resistance. Acid and alkali resistance. Because of its high cost performance, it is widely used in various industrial environments.

Fishing vessels and fishing industry. PVC is waterproof and low temperature resistant, which is very suitable for cold deep-sea fishing boats. People usually add very thick thermal insulation materials inside the PVC gloves, so that the PVC gloves can give consideration to both cold resistance and waterproof. The manufacturer will also use a process to increase the grip on the surface of gloves, so that workers can better complete the work.

Acid and alkali resistant environment for chemical industry. PVC protective gloves have good acid and alkali resistance, and can resist the corrosion of various strong acids, strong alkalis and general chemicals. This kind of protective gloves can prevent the harm of extreme chemicals such as acid and alkali. For gloves used in a chemical environment, the quality shall comply with relevant national regulations on industrial safety production. Anti acid and alkali labor protective gloves shall be leak proof, that is, they must be airtight. Under specific pressure, no air leakage is allowed.

Which industries are suitable for latex chemical resistant gloves?

Latex gloves are one of the most common gloves. Unlike many people’s intuition, thick industrial latex gloves can protect against chemicals such as nitric acid, sulfuric acid, methanol, formaldehyde, sodium hydroxide and acetic acid. When the latex gloves are chlorinated, the extremely high softness can support users to complete detailed hand work.

Laboratory. Laboratory workers often need to perform delicate operations. Latex chemical resistant gloves can be said to be the best choice. When dealing with corrosive liquids such as sulfuric acid or hydrochloric acid, there are reports that latex industrial gloves can play a strong protective role.

Food processing industry. Latex is a non-toxic substance, which does not contain bisphenol A. In the EN-1186 test, it is proved that the hands can be kept dry in a humid environment, while ensuring that the processed food is not contaminated. Some manufacturers will also make the gloves wrinkle, so that the gloves can have a better grip. Usually in the cold Nordic salmon production workshop, this kind of thick latex gloves is an excellent substitute for disposable gloves.

Public health industry. As the world pays more attention to health, the market of disposable gloves is also growing rapidly. However, in some harsh, humid and unclean environments, thick latex gloves that can resist bacteria will be more suitable.

Which industries are suitable for nitrile chemical gloves?

Nitrile rubber gloves combine the advantages of low temperature resistance of PVC gloves. Their softness is between PVC and latex gloves, but their flexibility is poor. They are also common chemical resistant gloves on the market. Nitrile rubber gloves have a good protective effect on acetone, ethanol, isobutyl, isopropyl and methanol. This kind of gloves is very suitable for some jobs requiring painting.

Food industry. EN 1186 report shows that nitrile gloves manufactured are also safe for food.

Household cleaning. Nitrile rubber gloves have a good isolating effect on detergents. And in comparison with rubber gloves, it can be found that their durability is often higher than that of household gloves. And because nitrile rubber has a certain degree of puncture resistance, it is also suitable for handling food or some sharp objects.

Industrial plant. In some working environments where cleaning products, chemicals, pesticides, etc. need to be handled, wearing nitrile chemical resistant gloves can provide users with higher protection. In the manufacturing industry and the automobile industry, nitrile latex gloves can give workers better flexibility.

Which industries are suitable for neoprene chemical resistant gloves?

Neoprene rubber is a synthetic rubber registered by DuPont, which is smooth, wear-resistant and heat-resistant. Neoprene gloves are usually suitable for industrial cleaning and metal chemical treatment industries.

Battery industry. The battery industry often uses neoprene gloves as protective equipment. Because it can have a good anti-corrosion effect when the gloves are very thin, it also gives consideration to the user’s dexterous work. Because of its high price, it is sometimes replaced by rubber gloves.

Which industries are suitable for butyl rubber chemical protective gloves?

Butyl gloves have good effects on preventing esters, ketones, aldehydes and alcohols. Gloves with high protection performance can be made with the thickness of 5mil, 7mil and 14mil. Butyl rubber gloves only require a high manufacturing process of manufacturers, so the butyl gloves on the market are special products for special industries.

Battery industry. In some areas of China, butyl gloves will be used to replace neoprene gloves for the battery industry. Because they have similar protective effects in this industry, but their prices are much lower.

Dyeing industry. In some areas, people also need to use their hands to touch the cloth from the rigid dye tank. At this time, a pair of reliable butyl rubber gloves can bring incomparable protection to your hands.

What industries are Viton chemical resistant gloves suitable for?

Viton gloves have strong chemical resistance and heat resistance, and are often used in the aviation field. Since Viton is an expensive material, it is rarely used in general industrial fields. So I will not introduce it here.

Summary

A pair of good chemical resistant gloves can protect your hands from chemicals. The quick way to choose chemical resistant gloves is to observe the material and thickness of the gloves. Then check the introduction on the logo or package. If it is a professional field, it is better to consult the experts related to PPE, or test whether the gloves meet the use needs before use.

Purchase gloves from reliable chemical gloves manufacturers

Sunny Bryant Industrial is a manufacturer of industrial rubber gloves with 30 years of experience. At the same time, it also has a profound accumulation in the PPE industry. Please contact us and let us provide you with industrial gloves that meet your needs.