WHICH ONE IS DANGEROUS: MOTH OR MOTH REPELLENT NAPHTHALENE?

Abstract

Naphthalene is a white solid that evaporates easily. It is also called mothballs, moth flakes, white tar, and tar camphor.  The major consumer products made from naphthalene are moth repellents, in the form of mothballs or crystals, and toilet deodorant blocks. The major commercial use of naphthalene is to make other chemicals used in making polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics. Naphthalene has a strong but not unpleasant smell. Its taste is unknown, but it must not be unpleasant since children have eaten mothballs and deodorant blocks. Naphthalene enters the environment from industrial uses, from its use as a moth repellent, from the burning of wood or tobacco, and from accidental spills. Naphthalene at hazardous wastesites and landfills can dissolve in water and be present in drinking water. Naphthalene can become weakly attached to soil or pass through the soil particles into underground water. Most of the naphthalene entering the environment is from the burning of woods and fossil fuels in the home. The second greatest release of naphthalene is through the use of moth repellents. Individuals exposed to naphthalene such as inhalation of contaminated air, ingestion of contaminated groundwater used as a source of drinking water, ingestion of contaminated food, and dermal contact with contaminated soils or products treated with the compound. Naphthalene and waste containing naphthalene are classified as hazardous wastes by EPA. Generators of waste containing this contaminant must conform to EPA regulations for treatment, storage, and disposal. Therefore, harmful and toxic effects of naphthalene that is used to get rid of moths is discussed as the main objective and content of this work.

Keywords

• WHICH ONE IS DANGEROUS: MOTH OR MOTH REPELLENT NAPHTHALENE?

References

1. Aysel Kekillioğlu, Feyza Keçici, Gamze Durak
2. Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Department of Biology, 50300, Nevşehir, Turkey