Clamped in a Straitjacket: The Insertion of Lead into Gasoline

In 1925, shortly after production of tetraethyl lead began, an outbreak of psychosis occurred in all three operating plants, and a number of workers died in acute mania. A temporary moratorium on the production of tetraethyl lead was imposed, and the Public Health Service convened a meeting of scien...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEnvironmental Research Vol. 74; no. 2; pp. 95 - 103
Main Author Needleman, Herbert L.
Format Book Review Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 01.01.1997
Elsevier
Subjects
Biological and medical sciences
Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases
Chemical Industry
Gasoline
Humans
Lead
Lead Poisoning - epidemiology
Lead Poisoning - prevention & control
Medical sciences
Metals and various inorganic compounds
Public Health
Toxicology
United States - epidemiology
United States
North America
America
Human
Occupational accident
Toxicity
Gasoline
Automobile industry
Lead
Case history
Heavy metal
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Summary:In 1925, shortly after production of tetraethyl lead began, an outbreak of psychosis occurred in all three operating plants, and a number of workers died in acute mania. A temporary moratorium on the production of tetraethyl lead was imposed, and the Public Health Service convened a meeting of scientists, public health officials, and industrial representatives to investigate the safety of the product. This paper reviews the steps leading to the insertion of lead into gasoline, the response of industry to the tragic poisoning, the actions of the public health authorities to investigate the episode, and the forces that resulted in the restoration of the additive to gasoline.
ISSN:0013-9351
1096-0953
DOI:10.1006/enrs.1997.3767