Nickel has a critical role in the global drive to a green and circular economy. As a resource element, nickel is used in numerous applications like electric vehicle batteries, medical implants, and stainless steel appliances.

The effects of nickel on the environment and human health have been studied for over a century. We know more about the health and environmental effects of nickel now than we did just a few decades ago.

We now adequately understand the hazards and can predict the risks from exposures to nickel during production and use. This knowledge, coupled with the various jurisdictional and international regulations on nickel exposure, means there is increased protection of workers and consumers from the toxicological effects associated with nickel exposure.

What is the ‘Guide’ and why the update?

Because nickel compounds have hazard classifications, it is important that they are handled and used correctly in the workplace to ensure that health risks to workers are eliminated. Since 1993, the Nickel Institute has provided the Safe use of Nickel in the Workplace guide – a compendium of information on the exposure and hazards associated with working with nickel. It is freely available on the Nickel Institute website to help companies protect workers involved with nickel production and use. The Guide is a resource for evaluating both nickel exposures and health risks at the workplace, with the aim of protecting the worker and promoting safe handling of nickel materials. The Safe use of Nickel in the Workplace guide, has undergone periodic updates over the years as new information became available on the exposure, toxicity, classification and risk assessment of nickel. An updated 4^th edition was recently released.

A module approach

A module approach was taken in updating the 4^th edition of the Guide. This approach was to allow independent updates to occur on the two modules as pertinent, new information pertaining to each module became available. The first module, which was updated in 2021, covers the toxicology and hazard classification of nickel substances.

This module deals with the production and use of nickel substances in various industries, what happens to nickel in the body once exposure occurs (pharmacokinetics), the acute and chronic health effects associated with exposure to nickel, and last but not least, the various hazard classifications of nickel. The updated Module 1 can be accessed on the Nickel Institute website.

Module 2 of the Workplace Guide will be updated shortly and it will cover more workplace-related concerns, such as the exposure of workers to nickel substances and health assessments.

What is new in the updated Guide Module 1

Since the 3^rd edition of the Workplace Guide was published in 2008, new studies on the toxicology of nickel substances have become available. New chronic studies, such as oral and inhalation cancer bioassays with nickel sulfate and nickel metal respectively, and mechanistic studies with various nickel substances have been published.

In 2018, the Risk Assessment Committee (RAC) of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) rendered an opinion on occupational exposure limits for nickel and nickel compounds in the workplace. The RAC concluded that nickel compounds are indirectly mutagenic, induce genotoxicity through indirect mechanisms and have threshold mode-of-action for carcinogenic effects. Back in 2011, the Scientific Committee on Occupational Exposure Limits (SCOEL) of the European Commission had also concluded that nickel compounds are carcinogens with a practical threshold.

The guide is a useful resource for nickel producers and users, enabling its safe use in the workplace in a multitude of valuable applications.

Download the Safe use of nickel in the workplace Module 1: toxicology and hazard classification of nickel substances