Ethyl isocyanate

· CALL 911. Then call emergency response telephone number on shipping paper. If shipping paper not available or no answer, refer to appropriate telephone number listed on the inside back cover.

· ELIMINATE all ignition sources (no smoking, flares, sparks or flames) from immediate area.

Excerpt from ERG Guide 155 [Substances - Toxic and/or Corrosive (Flammable / Water-Sensitive)]:

General First Aid:

· Wear positive pressure self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA).

TIH (Toxic Inhalation Hazard) - Term used to describe gases and volatile liquids that are toxic when inhaled. Some are TIH materials themselves, e.g., chlorine, and some release TIH gases when spilled in water, e.g., chlorosilanes. [ERG 2016].

If material on fire or involved in fire: Do not extinguish fire unless flow can be stopped. Use water in flooding quantities as fog. Solid streams of water may be ineffective. Cool all affected containers with flooding quantities of water. Use "alcohol" foam, dry chemical or carbon dioxide. Keep run-off water out of sewers and water sources.

Persons involved in fighting fires should wear a self-contained breathing apparatus with a full facepiece operated in a pressure-demand or other positive pressure mode. ... /Methyl isocyanate/

SRP: The most favorable course of action is to use an alternative chemical product with less inherent propensity for occupational exposure 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, aquatic, and plant life; and conformance with environmental and public health regulations.

/For small quantities/ evaporate material in a fume hood. /Methyl isocyanate/

... Employees should change into uncontaminated clothing before leaving the work premises. Contaminated clothing should be placed in closed containers until it can either be discarded or until provision can be made for the removal of the contaminant. Employees should also be provided with emergency eyewash stations ... . /Methyl isocyanate/

Do not allow this material to enter a confined space, such as a sewer, because of the possibility of an explosion. /Methyl isocyanate/

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.

Personnel protection: Avoid breathing vapors. Keep upwind. ... Do not handle broken packages unless wearing appropriate personal protective equipment. If contact with the material anticipated, wear appropriate chemical protective clothing.

For more Preventive Measures (Complete) data for ETHYL ISOCYANATE (6 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Excerpt from ERG Guide 155 [Substances - Toxic and/or Corrosive (Flammable / Water-Sensitive)]:

Immediate precautionary measure

Small spill:

Small spill:

0.02 [ppm]

0.06 [ppm]

0.0031 [ppm]

0.034 [ppm]

0.10 [ppm]

The effects of 2-chloroethylisocyanate, ethylisocyanate and sodium cyanate on the uptake of isotope-labeled thymidine, leucine and H2O were compared in rat liver and hepatomas. The data suggested that carbamoylating agents may have a common property of inhibiting uptake of compounds in hepatomas under conditions in which there is a smaller effect or no action in the liver of tumor-bearing rats. The distinction between tissues may have been mediated, in part, through effects on tumor circulation and was less apparent when isolated cells were studied in vitro. Preferential inhibitory effects of carbamoylating agents on the uptake of leucine and H2O were also observed with a murine hepatoma, but they were not as great as with rat hepatomas.

TERRESTRIAL FATE: Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in moist soil(SRC). Soil adsorption, biodegradation, and volatilization from moist soil are not expected to compete with hydrolysis as important fate and transport processes(SRC). Ethyl isocyanate may volatilize from dry soil surfaces(SRC) based upon an estimated vapor pressure of 200 mm Hg(2).

AQUATIC FATE: Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in water(SRC). Sorption to sediments, volatilization, bioconcentration, and biodegradation are not expected to compete with hydrolysis as important fate and transport processes in water(SRC).

ATMOSPHERIC FATE: According to a model of gas/particle partitioning of semivolatile organic compounds in the atmosphere(1), ethyl isocyanate, which has an estimated vapor pressure of 200 mm Hg at 25 °C(SRC), determined from a structure estimation method(2), is expected to exist solely as a vapor in the ambient atmosphere. Vapor-phase ethyl isocyanate 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 15 days(SRC), calculated from its rate constant of 1.1X10-12 cu cm/molecule-sec at 25 °C(SRC) that was derived using a structure estimation method(3). Ethyl isocyanate does not contain chromophores that absorb at wavelengths >290 nm and therefore is not expected to be susceptible to direct photolysis by sunlight(4).

Initial Medical Examination: A complete history and physical examination should be performed to detect pre-existing conditions that might place the exposed employee at an increased risk and to establish a baseline for future health monitoring. Examination of the eyes and respiratory tract should be stressed and the skin should be examined for evidence of chronic disorders. The aforementioned medical examinations should be repeated on an annual basis. /Methyl isocyanate/

Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in moist soil and water(SRC). Adsorption to soil and sediment is not expected to compete with hydrolysis as an important environmental process(SRC).

/SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS/ Exposure of humans to high concn may cause cough, dyspnea, chest pain and an increase in secretions. /Methyl isocyanate/

/SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS/ Isocyanates are irritating to the skin and the mucous membranes, the skin conditions ranging from localized itching to more or less widespread eczema. Eye affections are less common and, although lacrimation is often found, conjunctivitis is rare. The commonest and most serious troubles, however, are those affecting the respiratory systems. /Isocyanates/

/SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS/ Isocyanates ... produce lung disease /in/ manufacture of plastics and chemical industry. Acute effects /include/ airway irritation, cough, /and/ dyspnea; chronic effects /include asthma, and/ reduced pulmonary function. /From table, isocyanates/

/EPIDEMIOLOGY STUDIES/ /During/ 0.5 to 4 yr of follow-up after leaving work, /among total of 104/ subjects with occupational asthma /from isocyanate exposure/, 50 to 82% /had/ persistence of symptoms and 58 to 77% of bronchial hyperresponsiveness. /From table, isocyanates/

Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in moist soil and water(SRC). Biodegradation is not expected to compete with hydrolysis as an important fate process(SRC).

Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in water(SRC). Bioconcentration is not expected to compete with hydrolysis as an important environmental process(SRC).

Isocyanates undergo rapid hydrolysis under environmental conditions with half-lives of less than 10 minutes(1). Therefore, hydrolysis is expected to be the dominant fate process for ethyl isocyanate in moist soil and water(SRC). Volatilization from moist soil and water surfaces is not expected to compete with hydrolysis as an important removal process(SRC). Ethyl isocyanate may volatilize from dry soil surfaces(SRC) based upon an estimated vapor pressure of 200 mm Hg at 25 °C(SRC), determined using a structure estimation method(2).

2% of some worker populations /with the genetic factor of / immunologic hypersensitivity /have increased risk when exposed to/ isocyanates. /From table, Isocyanates/

Persons with a history of asthma, allergies ... or impaired lung or pulmonary function may be at an increased risk. /Methyl isocyanate/

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.

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. Ethane, isocyanato is included on this list.