Whats in that Blood Testing Strip?
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Free-Press-Release.com) June 1, 2009 — I was curious about what it was inside my test strip that reacts with my blood when I test my blood sugar levels. Having worked in the eWaste industry for several years, I was interested to find out if there was any value contained in used testing strips. I took an unused test strip to a laboratory technician who had a handheld spectrometer and was amazed to discover that besides the polymers (plastics) that housed the strip, there were detectable amounts of Fe (Iron), Cn (Cyanide), and Ti (Titanium). Unfortunately there is little to no scrap value contained in old strips – but there is a hidden hazard. Many blood glucose test strips contain potassium ferricyanide – a reagent that is used to detect concentrations of glucose in blood. Upon further investigation, I learned that potassium ferricyanide is relatively stable but is hazardous when combined with acids and can even cause death from respiratory arrest due to exposure
