OSHA Formaldehyde Fact Sheet

Formaldehyde is a colorless, strong-smelling gas often found in aqueous (waterbased) solutions. Commonly used as a preservative in medical laboratories and mortuaries, formaldehyde is also found in many products such as chemicals, particle board, household products, glues, permanent press fabrics, paper product coatings, fiberboard, and plywood. It is also widely used as an industrial fungicide, germicide and disinfectant. Although the term formaldehyde describes various mixtures of formaldehyde, water, and alcohol, the term “formalin” is used to describe a saturated solution of formaldehyde dissolved in water, typically with another agent, most commonly methanol, added to stabilize the solution. Formalin is typically 37% formaldehyde by weight (40% by volume) and 6-13% methanol by volume in water. The formaldehyde component provides the disinfectant effects of formalin Features Poster size 11” x 17” Poster is available in English and in Spanish Front and back sides are laminated Quality printing in full color Attorney Approved Recycled Paper Made in USA Poster content is guaranteed to be up-to-date