The most dangerous single thing in computer technology is toner
...the (usually) black dust used in laser printers to form the print image.
Toner dust has been classified by the FDA a class-A carcinogen. Because of this, care should be taken in the installation, removal, and disposal of print toner cartridges:
Be careful not to get it on your hands or skin
Wash your hands when you are done
Take all possible steps to avoid breathing it
Toner is so fine that it easily becomes airborne. Before changing a toner cartridge, you may want to don a dust mask.
They only cost a few bucks, can be used over and over, and, gee-whiz, aren't your lungs worth it?
(thing) by Blue_Bellied_Lizard (3.7 d) (print) ? 1 C! Tue Jan 30 2001 at 2:23:53
The dust mask might not be a bad idea, because toner is composed of extremely fine particles, and it's never good to inhale fine particulate matter. However, the health risk is not as great as sometimes imagined.
The Materials Safety Data Sheet from a typical laser printer cartridge (the Hewlett-Packard 4) includes the following:
Potential Health Effects:
Ingestion effects: Ingestion is not applicable route of entry for intended use.
Inhalation effects: Minimal respiratory tract irritation may occur with exposure to large amount of toner dust.
Eye Effects: May cause eye irritation.
Skin effects: Unlikely to cause skin irritation.
And...
Other Toxicity Data:
Mutagenicity: Negative (Ames Test: Salmonella typhimurium)
Carcinogenicity: Not a known or suspected carcinogen according to any IARC Monograph, NTP, OSHA Regulations (USA), EU Directive, or Proposition 65 (California).
Some toners do contain carbon black, which is classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a class 2B carcinogen, but it is generally considered encapsulated by the polymers that make up 90% of the toner, therefore bio-inaccessible. At a 1998 Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute symposium, Joe L. Mauderly presented a paper discussing a recent research review:
Inhalation carcinogenicity bioassays of 32 nonfibrous particles using rats have been reported. The comparison of the results of these studies is compromised by the use of differing experimental designs and exposure levels. However, of these 32, only two (copying toner and petroleum coke) were negative at the maximum tested level according to current interpretation. All of the studies included exposure levels far above anticipated human exposures; it can only be speculated whether the negative particles might have been positive at even higher levels of exposure. The response to toner was not statistically significant at the highest level...
All that being said, toner remains a fine particle pollutant, and one that is so pervasive in almost all workplaces that some common-sense precautions should be taken. The most important of these is never use an ordinary vacuum cleaner on toner. It passes unimpeded through the filters on household vacuums, becoming a true airborne nuisance. If you have a toner spill that cannot be wiped up, call a service technician. They use vacuums with special filters that are designed to trap toner.
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