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BluetoothXIII t1_irvku9k wrote

Reply to comment by AnXioneth in What makes mercury so toxic? by Professional_Try_384

the term "mad as a hatter" comes to mind, hat makers used mercury salts in their work.

metallic mercury isn´t that toxic in the sense of poison or venom it is mostly harmfull because it is in the way. you could drink mercury without adverse effects if you don´t inhale. it was used against constipation.

if you inhale Mercury it stays in the lung and blocks area that normally used for gas exchange.

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Professional_Try_384 OP t1_irwaxvj wrote

So does that mean that it’s fine if it’s in like a tube with a cork?

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BluetoothXIII t1_irwgxj7 wrote

If it is air tight it shouldn't be a problem, the high vapor pressure makes that difficult if the temperature changes. You should look up proper storage procedure. I was told dangerous substances are only dangerous if they are where the shouldn't be. Poison that looks like candy is totally save if placed in a locked poison shelf. Dangerous if left in the candy shelf.

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[deleted] t1_irx9mfz wrote

The mercury reduced the sulfhydryl bonds in the sheep's wool, making felt.

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Professional_Try_384 OP t1_ism6boy wrote

So does that mean it can be in that with no effect on people around it?

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[deleted] t1_isolo2u wrote

The mercury acts as a catalyst, so it isn't consumed per se, so that afterwards, all of it can be removed from the felt. I am sure if you were to take a victorian era piece of felt you would find some mercury in it. But in terms of the victorians, their wallpaper was much more dangerous. It was a bright green color loved by the middle class. The problem was it was made with Chromium VI, which when exposed to moisture, would end up in the victorians.

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Zavaldski t1_ity5piz wrote

The green color was from arsenic, not hexavalent chromium.

Even more toxic.

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