1,2,3,4-Tetrahydronaphthalin

Excerpt from ERG Guide 128 [Flammable Liquids (Water-Immiscible)]:

Use water spray, powder, foam, carbon dioxide. In case of fire: keep drums, etc., cool by spraying with water.

Fresh air, rest. Refer for medical attention.

Rinse skin with plenty of water or shower. Remove contaminated clothes.

First rinse with plenty of water for several minutes (remove contact lenses if easily possible), then refer for medical attention.

Do NOT induce vomiting. Give one or two glasses of water to drink. Refer for medical attention .

IN GENERAL MATERIALS ... TOXIC AS STORED OR WHICH CAN DECOMP INTO TOXIC COMPONENTS ... SHOULD BE STORED IN COOL ... VENTILATED PLACE, OUT OF ... SUN, AWAY FROM ... FIRE HAZARD ... BE PERIODICALLY INSPECTED & MONITORED. INCOMPATIBLE MATERIALS SHOULD BE ISOLATED.

Personal protection: chemical protection suit. Do NOT let this chemical enter the environment. Ventilation. Collect leaking and spilled liquid in covered containers as far as possible. Absorb remaining liquid in sand or inert absorbent. Then store and dispose of according to local regulations.

SRP: The scientific literature for the use of contact lenses in industry is conflicting. The benefit 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.

TERRESTRIAL FATE: If released to soil, adsorption is expected to take place. However, it has been detected in groundwater beneath a municipal landfill(4) and the annual loadings of tetralin in runoff from land in the Canadian Ontario and Great Lakes water basins are estimated to be 1,053 and 2,270 kg/yr, respectively(5). Based on biodegradation half-lives of 4-13 days in aquatic systems(1-3), biodegradation in soil will be important(SRC).

AQUATIC FATE: Based on the estimated Henry's Law constant of 1.7X10-3 atm-cu m/mol at 25 °C(2), volatilization half-lives from a model river (1 m deep flowing 1 m/sec and wind velocity of 3 m/sec) and lake (1 m deep) can be estimated to be 4 hours and 5 days, respectively(1,SRC). An estimated Koc value of 1,800(3) suggests a high adsorption potential; furthermore, tetralin was detected in suspended solids from St. Louis Bay(4). Screening and grab sample tests indicate a biodegradation half-life of 4-13 days in seawater, groundwater, and river water(5-7). Bioconcentration in fish may be important in organisms that cannot metabolize tetralin(8).

ATMOSPHERIC FATE: Based on the experimental vapor pressure of 0.368 mm Hg at 25 °C(1), tetralin is expected to exist almost entirely in the vapor phase in the ambient atmosphere(2). Vapor phase tetralin will degrade rapidly in the ambient atmosphere by reaction with photochemically produced hydroxyl radicals with a half-life of about 11 hours(3,SRC). Vapor phase tetralin will also degrade in the ambient atmosphere at night-time by reaction with nitrate radicals with a half-life of about 3.6 days(4-5,SRC).

Cough. Dizziness. Headache. Nausea. Vomiting. Weakness.

Redness. Pain.

Pain. Redness. Blurred vision.

Abdominal pain. See Inhalation.

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. [http://ntp-apps.niehs.nih.gov/ntp_tox/index.cfm?fuseaction=ntpsearch.searchresults&searchterm=119-64-2]

Tetralin was identified at a concn range of 13.3-154.3 ng/L in paper-mill effluents being discharged into the Rainy River(1). Tetralin was qualitatively identified in advanced waste treatment water from Lake Tahoe, CA in October of 1974(2). Tetralin was detected at a concn range of 2-58 ug/mL in 5 incinerator effluent extracts(3). Tetralin was detected 1 km from a Volvo assembly plant in Goteborg, Sweden at a concn of 4.6 ug/cu-m on January 14, 1981; regional Goteburg air contains less than 0.01 ug/cu-m tetralin(4). Also, 30 ug/cu-m tetralin was detected in air nearby a Saab assembly plant in Sweden on January 19, 1981(4). These data suggest tetralin is released from automobile assembly plants in emissions from solvents used during painting processes(4). Tetralin emission rates from well-tuned radiant and maltuned convective kerosene space heaters ranged from 100-240 ng/kJ(5).

Based upon monitoring data of runoff from land, approximately 1,053 and 2,271 kg tetralin/yr are input to the Canadian Lake Ontario and Canadian Great Lakes water basins, respectively(1). Tetralin was detected at a concn of 11 ng/g in wastewater from the petroleum refining industry after dissolved air flotation(2).

... IN HIGH CONCENTRATIONS, /SRP: CNS DEPRESSANT/ ... .

... VAPORS ARE KNOWN TO PRODUCE HEADACHE, NAUSEA, VOMITING, AND IRRITATION OF CONJUNCTIVA AND OF RESPIRATORY TRACT MUCOSA. HIGH CONCENTRATIONS PRODUCE /CNS DEPRESSION/.

Dermal exposure to tetralin has caused eczematous dermatitis, but only rarely, and exposure to tetralin fumes in poorly ventilated places has produced /CNS depressant/ effects including marked restless, eye irritation, headache, malaise, asthenia, nausea, and vomiting.

A hallmark for tetralin exposure in man is the production of green colored urine. ... Green urine /was reported/ from a man who had ingested 5.7 g of a pigment called di-tetralin. ... Two cases of "tetralin urine" /were reported/ in painters who used tetralin-containing varnishes in a poorly ventilated area; these workers also showed intense irritation of the mucous membranes, profuse lacrimation , headache, and stupor.

For more Human Toxicity Excerpts (Complete) data for TETRALIN (12 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Tetralin was detected in small mouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui) at a concn of 75.3 ng/g and yellow perch (Perca flavescens) at concns of 73.2 and 34.5 ng/g from the Rainy River which forms an international boundary between the U.S. and Canada(1).

Tetralin is released to the environment in emissions from automobile and diesel engines(1), incinerators(2), kerosene space heaters(3), and from automobile assembly plants during painting processes(4). Tetralin is released in effluents from paper-mills(5), petroleum refineries(6), and in advanced waste treatment effluents(7). Tetralin may also be released to surface waters via runoff from land(8).

DEGRADATION IN SEA WATER BY OIL OXIDIZING MICROORGANISMS: 31% BREAKDOWN AFTER 21 DAYS AT 22 °C IN STOPPERED BOTTLES CONTAINING A 1000 PPM MIXTURES OF ALKANES, CYCLOALKANES, AND AROMATICS.

One screening test using sewage seed suggests that tetralin (initial concn of 3-10 ppm) biodegrades slowly in synthetic seawater; 3, 3, 2, and 3 percent theoretical BOD in 5, 10, 15, and 20 days, respectively(1). However, 0.0124 ppm tetralin was not detected after 10 days of incubation in artificial seawater at 25 °C indicating that tetralin is moderately oxidized(2). An initial concn of 0.0112 ppm tetralin was observed to degrade 100% in 8 days in a groundwater grab sample at 10 °C and pH 8(3). Tetralin (20.1 ppm initial concn) exhibited 18, 40, 58, 65, 70, and 75 percent theoretical CO2 production after 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 35 days, respectively, in water from the Ohio River at 22-25 °C and pH 7.2; the half-life in this study was 13 days and, after redosing, a half-life of 9 days was observed under the same conditions(4).