Continued from About Mercury

Mercury is used as an electrode in the production of chlorine and sodium hydroxide and in certain electric batteries.

Mercury compounds have many uses. Calomel (mercurous chloride, Hg2Cl2) is a standard in electrochemical measurements and in medicine as a purgative. Mercuric chloride (corrosive sublimate, HgCl2) is an insecticide, a rat poison, and a disinfectant. Mercuric oxide is used in skin ointments. Mercuric sulfate is a catalyst in organic chemistry. Vermilion, a red pigment, is mercuric sulfide; another crystalline form of the sulfide (also used as a pigment) is black. Mercury fulminate, Hg(CNO)2, is a detonator. Mercury forms many organic compounds. Mercurochrome (in 2% aqueous solution) is used in medicine as a topical antiseptic.

Most mercury pesticides have been withdrawn from the U.S. market, and many countries banned ocean dumping of mercury and other pollutants in 1972. Production of mercury-containing interior and exterior paints in the United States was phased out in 1991. Mercury, which has been used in medicines for hundreds of years, continues to be used in various folk remedies that deliver exposures. The use of mercury in dental amalgam for tooth fillings has stirred escalating controversy in recent years. Most other medical uses have been banned or are being phased out, but mercury use in industry is increasing.