ruthenium nibs

[Neo]

Hello. A Google search result said that all ruthenium compounds should be considered toxic and carcinogenic, anyone have an idea which compound is used in fountain pen nibs?

[Plume145]

I don't I'm afraid, so I hope someone weighs in with an exact answer to your question but in the meantime, it's worth considering the issue of overall quantity and potential for absorption during typical use, rather than the exact composition. I'm not a chemist or a medic but I can't help but think about that old science class fave, 'the dose makes the poison' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_dose_makes_the_poison). Could there be something like that at play?

I've definitely never heard of FPs being toxic, to humans OR the wider ecosystem - what with being reusable for decades, they're probably more benign than the average pencil :P I've used them since I was a young child and grew up around lots of others who did too, including at school, so I think it's odds-on I'd have heard something at some point before now.

[discopig]

Unless you are touching your pen's nib's tipping constantly, I don't think you even risk getting in contact with it. And even if you did rub it all day, tipping is such a tiny amount (Only a fraction of the actual tipping is ruthenium), and the ruthenium is most likely not in any form that would be very bioavailable (same reason why elemental mercury is not very toxic, but mercury salts are very very toxic).

[Neo]

Actually a little context would probably be helpful. I bought a Rosetta #6 ruthenium plated nib with the intention of installing in one of my other pens that take a #6 as a customization. After replacing the nib and working on the tip with my bare hands I read the toxicity information online. Anyway I always wash my hands before eating and it's been a day and nothing has happened, I probably was just over reacting. The darker nib does look nice in a gray pen though. :)

[jar]

Not at all sure where you got the initial warning but naturally occurring ruthenium is stable and inert. There is zero risk with your nib. Chew it, suck it, lick it, all is good.

[snedwos]

The key word is probably compounds. The nib plating will be elemental ruthenium. I'm guessing. If you're chewing your nibs, you should have your pen custody rights revoked. I will happily offer a foster home to those poor little angels,

[Cob]

All a bit alarmist this, isn't it?

Life itself is risky; for myself I wouldn't care if the tips were made from Beryllium or Uranium (now those are poisonous)- I have smoked cigarettes for 53 years, I do not eat green vegetables in fact very little fruit or veg., and have never exercised, and in the words of the old song, "I ain't dead yet!" though quite obviously, statistically I am...

Cob

[manoeuver]

I never touch Parker pens since a 51 got lodged in muh uncle's ventricles. Not to be trusted.

[AltecGreen]

All a bit alarmist this, isn't it?
Life itself is risky; for myself I wouldn't care if the tips were made from Beryllium or Uranium (now those are poisonous)
Cob

Neither of those are poisonous in the direct sense. Beryllium is dangerous because the inhalation dust or fumes containing Be causes chronic berylliosis , a respiratory disease. Beryllium when alloyed with other metals is harmless and technologically important. You find it in electrical contacts in your household electrical sockets.

The primary hazard from Uranium is the radioactivity. In depleted form, Uranium is an alpha emitter and the danger is again in inhalation of particles. The human skin or almost any mass will stop an alpha particle. The daughter products emit beta rays but these are also stopped by the skin.

Ruthenium is found in elemental form as a coating on nibs and other metals parts. The hardware on my last custom guitar was all ruthenium plated. Ruthenium is part of the platinum family and very stable. Ruthenium is not attacked by most chemicals including harsh acids. If you drop a ruthenium coated nib into aqua regia (a mixture of concentrated nitric and hydrochloric acid), the gold in the nib will dissolve but the ruthenium would not. Like most heavy metals, the health effects of the compounds have not been heavily studied. Generally avoid ingestation and inhalation of particles. Compounds that pose a health hazard are very uncommon outside of specialized industrial settings and research labs. I wouldn't worry about the ruthenium oxides but probably compounds like ruthenium halides, e.g RuCl3. Again, the coating on your nib is pretty harmless.

[Neo]

Thank you everyone, I am still relatively new to this hobby and may have a lot of questions/concerns as a result. Anyway, I really enjoy this hobby and generally find learning new things interesting.

[johnus]

Sure 1st it "fungus" in ink and now "poison nibs". The Sisters never told us about this when they were instructing us on the proper use of pens!!
Then again, might be the reason why there aren't any left(;-(

[Jon Szanto]

I want to know who Ruth is and why she has it in for us. Bitch.

[Neo]

That's funny ;)