White spirit

right|thumb|308x308px|A container of white spirit

White spirit (AU, UK and Ireland) or mineral spirits (US, Canada), also known as mineral turpentine (AU/NZ/ZA), turpentine substitute, and petroleum spirits, is a petroleum-derived clear liquid used as a common organic solvent in painting. There are also terms for specific kinds of white spirit, including Stoddard solvent and solvent naphtha (petroleum). White spirit is often used as a paint thinner, or as a component thereof, though paint thinner is a broader category of solvent. Odorless mineral spirits (OMS) have been refined to remove the more toxic aromatic compounds, and are recommended for applications such as oil painting.

A mixture of aliphatic, open-chain or alicyclic C<sub>7</sub> to C<sub>12</sub> hydrocarbons, white spirit is insoluble in water and is used as an extraction solvent, as a cleaning solvent, as a degreasing solvent and as a solvent in aerosols, paints, wood preservatives, lacquers, varnishes, and asphalt products. In western Europe about 60% of the total white spirit consumption is used in paints, lacquers and varnishes.

Each type comprises three grades: low flash grade, regular grade, and high flash grade (flash refers to flash point). The grade is determined by the crude oil used as the starting material and the conditions of distillation. developed in 1924 by Atlanta dry cleaner W. J. Stoddard and Lloyd E. Jackson of the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research as a less flammable petroleum-based dry cleaning solvent than the petroleum solvents then in use. Dry cleaners began using the result of their work in 1928 and it soon became the predominant dry cleaning solvent in the United States, until the late 1950s.

Turpentine substitute is generally not made to a standard and can have a wider range of components than products marketed as white spirit, which is made to a standard (in the UK, British Standard BS 245, in Germany, DIN 51632). Turpentine substitute can be used for general cleaning but is not recommended for paint thinning as it may adversely affect drying times due to the less volatile components; while it may be used for brush cleaning its heavier components may leave an oily residue.

Chemical registry numbers

{|class=wikitable

! CAS !! EINECS !! Name !! Descriptive name!!Ref

| 8030-30-6 || 232-443-2 || Naphtha ||||

| 8052-41-3 || 232-489-3 || Stoddard solvent || Stoddard solvent is a North American term corresponding to white spirit type 1 ||

| 64742-88-7 || 265-191-7 || white spirit type 0 || medium aliphatic solvent naphtha (petroleum) || Artists use white spirit as an alternative to turpentine since it is less flammable and less toxic. Because of interactions with pigments in oil paints, artists require a higher grade of white spirit than many industrial users, including the complete absence of residual sulfur.

White spirit was formerly an active ingredient in the laundry soap Fels Naptha, used to dissolve oils and grease in laundry stains, and as a popular remedy for eliminating the irritant oil urushiol in poison ivy. It was removed as a potential health risk.

White spirit has a characteristic unpleasant kerosene-like odor. Chemical manufacturers have developed a low odor version of mineral turpentine which contains less of the highly volatile shorter hydrocarbons. Odorless mineral spirits is white spirit that has been further refined to remove the more toxic aromatic compounds, and is recommended for applications such as oil painting, where humans have close contact with the solvent.

In screen printing (also referred to as silk-screening), white spirit is often used to clean and unclog screens after printing with oil-based textile and plastisol inks. It is also used to thin inks used in making monoprints.

White spirit is often used inside liquid-filled compasses and gauges.

White spirits are a major ingredient in some popular automotive fuel/oil additives, such as Marvel Mystery Oil, as they are capable of dissolving varnish and sludge buildup.

Portable lanterns and stoves

Although white spirit is sometimes used as an alternative to camp fuel, such as kerosene or paraffin, in portable lanterns and camp stoves , this is highly inadvisable as typical grades of white spirit have a lower flash point than kerosene. It cannot be used as an alternative to Coleman camp fuel or white gas, which is a much more volatile gasoline-like fuel.

Other

White spirit is a contact herbicide, such as used by the Pachaug State Forest circa 1970. Mineral spirits helped control weeds in conifer seedbeds, but were not effective on all kinds, had no residual effect, required repeated applications dangerous to seedlings, and extensive hand-weeding was still needed.

Toxicity

White spirit is mainly classed as an irritant. It has a fairly low acute toxicity by inhalation of the vapour, dermal (touching the skin) and oral (ingestion) routes. However, acute exposure can lead to central nervous system depression resulting in lack of coordination and slowed reactions. Exposure to very high concentrations in enclosed spaces can lead to general narcotic effects (drowsiness, dizziness, nausea, etc.) and can eventually lead to unconsciousness. Oral ingestion presents a high aspiration hazard. Prolonged or repeated skin exposure over a long period of time can result in severe irritant dermatitis, also called contact dermatitis. Similar long-term studies have been made in which some of the observed effects included memory impairment, poor concentration, increased irritability etc. White spirit is implicated in the development of chronic toxic encephalopathy (CTE) among house painters. In severe cases CTE may lead to disability and personality changes.

Chemical registry numbers

Portable lanterns and stoves

Other

Toxicity

See also

Footnotes

References

External links