Tris(2-butoxyethyl)phosphat

EYES: First check the victim for contact lenses and remove if present. Flush victim's eyes with water or normal saline solution for 20 to 30 minutes while simultaneously calling a hospital or poison control center. Do not put any ointments, oils, or medication in the victim's eyes without specific instructions from a physician. IMMEDIATELY transport the victim after flushing eyes to a hospital even if no symptoms (such as redness or irritation) develop.

To fight fire: water, foam, carbon dioxide, dry chemical.

Suitable extinguishing media: Use water spray, alcohol-resistant foam, dry chemical or carbon dioxide.

Advice for firefighters: Wear self contained breathing apparatus for fire fighting if necessary.

Accidental Release Measures. Personal precautions, protective equipment and emergency procedures: Use personal protective equipment. Avoid breathing vapors, mist or gas. Ensure adequate ventilation. Evacuate personnel to safe areas. Environmental precautions: Prevent further leakage or spillage if safe to do so. Do not let product enter drains. Discharge into the environment must be avoided. Methods and materials for containment and cleaning up: Soak up with inert absorbent material and dispose of as hazardous waste. Keep in suitable, closed containers for disposal.

SMALL SPILLS AND LEAKAGE: If you spill this chemical, FIRST REMOVE ALL SOURCES OF IGNITION. Then, use absorbent paper to pick up all liquid spill material. Your contaminated clothing and absorbent paper should be sealed in a vapor-tight plastic bag for eventual disposal. Solvent wash all contaminated surfaces with ethanol followed by washing with a soap and water solution. Do not reenter the contaminated area until the Safety Officer (or other responsible person) has verified that the area has been properly cleaned.

SRP: The most favorable course of action is to use an alternative chemical product with less inherent propensity for occupational harm/injury/toxicity or environmental contamination. Recycle any unused portion of the material for its approved use or return it to the manufacturer or supplier. Ultimate disposal of the chemical must consider: the material's impact on air quality; potential migration in soil or water; effects on animal and plant life; and conformance with environmental and public health regulations.

Waste treatment methods. Product: Offer surplus and non-recyclable solutions to a licensed disposal company. Contact a licensed professional waste disposal service to dispose of this material. Contaminated packaging: Dispose of as unused product.

SRP: The scientific literature for the use of contact lenses by industrial workers is inconsistent. The benefits or detrimental effects of wearing contact lenses depend not only upon the substance, but also on factors including the form of the substance, characteristics and duration of the exposure, the uses of other eye protection equipment, and the hygiene of the lenses. However, there may be individual substances whose irritating or corrosive properties are such that the wearing of contact lenses would be harmful to the eye. In those specific cases, contact lenses should not be worn. In any event, the usual eye protection equipment should be worn even when contact lenses are in place.

Precautions for safe handling: Avoid contact with skin and eyes. Avoid inhalation of vapor or mist. Normal measures for preventive fire protection.

Appropriate engineering controls: Handle in accordance with good industrial hygiene and safety practice. Wash hands before breaks and at the end of workday.

Gloves must be inspected prior to use. Use proper glove removal technique (without touching glove's outer surface) to avoid skin contact with this product. Dispose of contaminated gloves after use in accordance with applicable laws and good laboratory practices. Wash and dry hands.

9.0 [mg/m3]

99 [mg/m3]

590 [mg/m3]

RECOMMENDED RESPIRATOR: Where the neat test chemical is weighed and diluted, wear a NIOSH-approved half face respirator equipped with an organic vapor/acid gas cartridge (specific for organic vapors, HCl, acid gas and SO2) with a dust/mist filter. (NTP, 1992)

Respiratory protection (supplied-air respirator with full facepiece or self-contained breathing apparatus) should be available where these compounds are manufactured or used and should be worn in case of emergency and overexposure. /Phosphorus compounds/

Eye/face protection: Face shield and safety glasses Use equipment for eye protection tested and approved under appropriate government standards such as NIOSH (US) or EN 166(EU).

Skin protection: Handle with gloves.

Body Protection: Complete suit protecting against chemicals, The type of protective equipment must be selected according to the concentration and amount of the dangerous substance at the specific workplace.

Respiratory protection: Where risk assessment shows air-purifying respirators are appropriate use a full-face respirator with multipurpose combination (US) or type ABEK (EN 14387) respirator cartridges as a backup to engineering controls. If the respirator is the sole means of protection, use a full-face supplied air respirator. Use respirators and components tested and approved under appropriate government standards such as NIOSH (US) or CEN (EU).

Plasticizer tributoxyethyl phosphate was identified in post-mortem blood sample. Presence of plasticizers in blood samples can arise by contamination from rubber stopper of blood specimen containers.

Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate was detected in 20 of 58 adipose tissue samples taken from Kingston, Ontario at 0.7-26.8 ng/g. It was also detected in 21 of 57 adipose tissue samples taken from Ottawa, Ontario at 0.9-142.2 ng/g(1).

Adipose tissue samples collected from cadavers in six Ontario, Canada municipalities had the following tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate concentrations(1):[Table#4047]

LC50; Species: Pimephales promelas (fathead minnow); Conditions: flow-through bioassay with measured concentrations, 26.2 °C, dissolved oxygen 7.6 mg/L, hardness 45.4 mg/L calcium carbonate, alkalinity 43.9 mg/l calcium carbonate, and pH 7.84; Concentration: 11.2 mg/L for 96 hr (confidence limit: 10.4-12.0 mg/L)

EC50; Species: Pimephales promelas (fathead minnow); Conditions: flow-through bioassay with measured concentrations, 26.2 °C, dissolved oxygen 7.6 mg/L, hardness 45.4 mg/L calcium carbonate, alkalinity 43.9 mg/L calcium carbonate, and pH 7.84; Concentration: 10.7 mg/L for 96 hr (confidence limit: 10.3-11.1 mg/L); Effect: loss of equilibrium

LC50; Species: Oryzias latipes (Japanese Medaka); Conditions: freshwater, static, 20 °C; Concentration: 27000 ug/L for 24 hr /formulation/

LC50; Species: Oryzias latipes (Japanese Medaka); Conditions: freshwater, static, 10 °C; Concentration: 44000 ug/L for 24 hr /formulation/

For more Ecotoxicity Values (Complete) data for Tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (8 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

TERRESTRIAL FATE: Based on a classification scheme(1), an estimated Koc value of 1260(SRC), determined from a structure estimation method(2), indicates that tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate is expected to have low mobility in soil(SRC). Volatilization of tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate from moist soil surfaces is not expected to be an important fate process(SRC) given an estimated Henry's Law constant of 1.2X10-11 atm-cu m/mole(SRC), using a fragment constant estimation method(2). Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate is not expected to volatilize from dry soil surfaces(SRC) based upon an estimated vapor pressure of 1.2X10-6 mm Hg at 25 °C(SRC), determined from a fragment constant method(2). Utilizing the Japanese MITI test, 0% of the theoretical BOD was reached in 4 weeks(3) indicating that biodegradation is not an important environmental fate process(SRC). However, in river die-away studies tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate degraded 100% in 30 days in one of three experiments(4).

AQUATIC FATE: Based on a classification scheme(1), an estimated Koc value of 1260(SRC), determined from a structure estimation method(2), indicates that tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate is expected to adsorb to suspended solids and sediment(SRC). Volatilization from water surfaces is not expected(3) based upon an estimated Henry's Law constant of 1.2X10-11 atm-cu m/mole(SRC), developed using a fragment constant estimation method(2). Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate may undergo environmental hydrolysis based on estimated half-lives of 93-95 days at pH 9-5(2). According to a classification scheme(4), experimental BCFs of <5.8 and <0.6-4.1 in carp(5), suggest bioconcentration in aquatic organisms is low(SRC). Studies have shown that tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate can be degraded in environmental conditions, however the mode of degradation may be unclear(6-7). Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate degraded 100% in 80 days aerobic pond water and pond water with sediment, but also degraded 20-75% in 80 days in sterilized experiments(6).

ATMOSPHERIC FATE: According to a model of gas/particle partitioning of semivolatile organic compounds in the atmosphere(1), tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate, which has an estimated vapor pressure of 1.2X10-6 mm Hg at 25 °C(SRC), determined from a fragment constant method(2), will exist in both the vapor and particulate phases in the ambient atmosphere. Vapor-phase tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate is degraded in the atmosphere by reaction with photochemically-produced hydroxyl radicals(SRC); the half-life for this reaction in air is estimated to be 3 hours(SRC), calculated from its rate constant of 1.2X10-10 cu cm/molecule-sec at 25 °C(SRC) that was derived using a structure estimation method(2). Particulate-phase tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate may be removed from the air by wet and dry deposition(SRC). Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate does not contain chromophores that absorb at wavelengths >290 nm(3) and, therefore, is not expected to be susceptible to direct photolysis by sunlight(SRC).

IDENTIFICATION AND USE: Tri (2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBEP) is a slightly yellow, oily liquid. It is used as a fire-resistant and light stable plasticizer in the production of vinyl resins, rubber, nitrocellulose and cellulose acetate, and synthetic rubber intended for contact with food or drink. HUMAN EXPOSURE AND TOXICITY: A repeat human insult patch test indicated no skin sensitization and minimal skin irritation. ANIMAL STUDIES: The acute systemic mammalian toxicity and irritation potential are low. Several subchronic studies in laboratory animals have shown that the liver is the target organ. One study in male Sprague-Dawley rats suggested that TBEP might cause focal myocarditis. In neurotoxicity studies in hens TBEP had no effect on neuropathy target esterase (NTE). Brain and plasma cholinesterases were inhibited in treated hens. Neurotoxicity studies in rats demonstrated degenerative changes in both myelinated and unmyelinated fibers of female and male animals. Although similar morphological changes were observed in both genders, females were more susceptible than males to the toxic effects of this compound. TBEP also induced electrophysiologic changes in sciatic nerves from rats. The long term toxicity and carcinogenicity of TBEP have not been studied. TBEP causes toxicity in the developing zebrafish by inhibiting the degradation and utilization of nutrients from the mother and inducing apoptosis. Teratogenicity was not observed. The compound is absorbed dermally in experimental animals but no information is available on its kinetics and metabolism. A mutagenicity test in Salmonella typhimurium strains TA1535, TA1538, TA1537, TA98 and TA100, with and without metabolic activation was negative. ECOTOXICITY STUDIES: The toxicity of TBEP to aquatic organisms is moderate.

The US Food and Drug Administration market basket surveys done April 1982-April 1984(1), June 1984-April 1986(2) and July 1986-April 1991(3), found that the average intake of tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (ng/kg body weight/day) for each of the following age groups:[Table#4045]

/BIRDS and MAMMALS/ Nine organophosphorus flame retardants (PFRs) were detected in a pelagic and benthic food web of the Western Scheldt estuary, The Netherlands. Concentrations of several PFRs were an order of magnitude higher than those of the brominated flame retardants (BFRs). ...

Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate concentrations were reported in female herring gull (Larus argentatus) tissue and egg components from samples collected Apr 2010 at Lake Huron colony site on Chantry Island(1).[Table#4043]

Nine organophosphorus flame retardants (PFRs) were detected in a pelagic and benthic food web of the Western Scheldt estuary, The Netherlands. Concentrations of several PFRs were an order of magnitude higher than those of the brominated flame retardants (BFRs). However, the detection frequency of the PFRs (6-56%) was lower than that of the BFRs (50-97%). ... Indications of trophic magnification of PFRs were observed in the benthic food web for tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP), tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCIPP), ... /and/ tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) with tentative trophic magnification factors of 3.5, 2.2 and 2.6, respectively (p<0.05). Most of the other PFRs showed trophic dilution in both food webs. The relative high PFR levels in several fish species suggest high emissions and substantial exposure of organisms to PFRs in the Western Scheldt.

EPA has released the first beta version (version 0.5) of the Interactive Chemical Safety for Sustainability (iCSS) Dashboard. The beta version of the iCSS Dashboard provides an interactive tool to explore rapid, automated (or in vitro high-throughput) chemical screening data generated by the Toxicity Forecaster (ToxCast) project and the federal Toxicity Testing in the 21st century (Tox21) collaboration. /The title compound was tested by ToxCast and/or Tox21 assays; See the data in Chemical Explorer/[USEPA; ICSS Dashboard Application; Available from, as of June 27, 2014: http://actor.epa.gov/dashboard/]

The following link will take the user to the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Test Agent Search Results page, which tabulates all of the "Standard Toxicology & Carcinogenesis Studies", "Developmental Studies", and "Genetic Toxicity Studies" performed with this chemical. Clicking on the "Testing Status" link will take the user to the status (i.e., in review, in progress, in preparation, on test, completed, etc.) and results of all the studies that the NTP has done on this chemical.[Available from, as of September 2, 2014: http://ntp-apps.niehs.nih.gov/ntp_tox/index.cfm?fuseaction=ntpsearch.searchresults&searchterm=78-51-3]

The concentration ranges of tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate in 5 effluents which directly discharge wastewater into the River Weser, Germany were 1260-3370, 800-2750, 2920-5299, 980-34900 and 12-836 ng/L, resulting in the discharged amount of 176-472, 12.8-44, 14.7-26.6, 19-687 and 0-2.3 g/day at the 5 locations, respectively(1). Effluent wastewater samples collected in July 2001 from three municipal sewage treatment plants and one industrial sewage treatment plant that discharge their treated wastewater into the Oder River in Germany had mean tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate concentrations of 2955 ng/L and 162 ng/L, respectively(2). The concentration of tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate in sludge samples taken from 11 sewage treatment plants located throughout Sweden was <5.1-1900 ng/g dry weight, samples were collected 2002 to 2003(3). The concentration of tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate in influent and effluent samples taken concurrently from these same plants was 5200-35,000 and 3100-30,000 ng/L, respectively(3). Tri(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate was detected at median values of 0.70-0.87 ug/L in influent samples and median concentration of 0.55 ug/L in effluent samples from three waste water treatment plants located in Galicia, Spain; samples were collected Nov 2007, Feb, Jun and Sep 2008(4).

Section 8(a) of TSCA requires manufacturers of this chemical substance to report preliminary assessment information concerned with production, exposure, and use to EPA as cited in the preamble in 51 FR 41329. Effective date: 10/29/90; Reporting date: 12/27/90.

Pursuant to section 8(d) of TSCA, EPA promulgated a model Health and Safety Data Reporting Rule. The section 8(d) model rule requires manufacturers, importers, and processors of listed chemical substances and mixtures to submit to EPA copies and lists of unpublished health and safety studies. Ethanol, 2-butoxy-, phosphaste (3:1) is included on this list. Effective date: 10/29/90; Sunset date: 12/19/95.