RESUMO
In the Lancashire cotton textile industry, mule spinners were prone to a chronic and sometimes fatal skin cancer (often affecting the groin). The disease had reached epidemic proportions by the 1920s, which necessitated action by the government, employers, and trade unions. In contrast to previous accounts, this article focuses on the government's reaction to mule spinners' cancer. Using official records in the National Archives, the slow introduction of health and safety measures by the government is explored in detail. Although obstructionism by the employers played a key role, one of the reasons for government inaction was the ambiguity of scientific research on engineering oils. On the other hand, prolonged scientific research suited a government policy that was framed around self regulation - a policy that had proved largely ineffective by the 1950s.
Assuntos
Carcinoma , Saúde Ocupacional , Neoplasias Cutâneas , Controles Informais da Sociedade , Indústria Têxtil , Carcinoma/etnologia , Carcinoma/história , Emprego/economia , Emprego/história , Emprego/psicologia , Regulamentação Governamental/história , História do Século XX , Exposição Ocupacional/história , Saúde Ocupacional/história , Saúde Ocupacional/legislação & jurisprudência , Gestão da Segurança/economia , Gestão da Segurança/história , Gestão da Segurança/legislação & jurisprudência , Neoplasias Cutâneas/etnologia , Neoplasias Cutâneas/história , Controles Informais da Sociedade/história , Indústria Têxtil/economia , Indústria Têxtil/educação , Indústria Têxtil/história , Reino Unido/etnologiaRESUMO
Electrocoagulation (EC) method with iron electrode was used to treat the textile wastewater in a batch reactor. Iron electrode material was used as a sacrificial electrode in monopolar parallel mode in this study. The removal efficiencies of the wastewater by EC were affected by initial pH of the solution, current density, conductivity and time of electrolysis. Under the optimal experimental conditions (initial pH 6.9, current density of 10 mA/cm(2), conductivity of 3,990 microS/cm, and electrolysis time of 10 min), the treatment of textile wastewater by the EC process led to a removal capacity of 78% of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and 92% of turbidity. The energy and electrode consumptions at the optimum conditions were calculated to be 0.7 kWh/kg COD (1.7 kWh/m(3)) and 0.2 kgFe/kg COD (0.5 kgFe/m(3)), respectively. Moreover, the operating cost was calculated as 0.2 euro/kg removed COD or 0.5 euro/m(3) treated wastewater. Zeta potential measurement was used to determine the charge of particle formed during the EC which revealed that Fe(OH)(3) might be responsible for the EC process.