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Sulfuric Acid
Description: Sulfuric acid (C.A.S. 7664-93-9) is a clear, colorless, oily, and odorless liquid. It is also known as sulphine acid, battery acid, and hydrogen sulfate. More sulfuric acid is produced in the United States than any other chemical. Its main use is in phosphate fertilizer production. It is also used to manufacture explosives, other acids, explosives, dyestuffs, parchment paper, glue, wood preservatives, and lead-acid batteries in vehicles. It is used in the purification of petroleum, the pickling of metal, electroplating baths, nonferrous metallurgy, and production of rayon and film; and as a laboratory reagent. Chemical properties: Sulfuric acid is very corrosive. It can be found in the air as small droplets or it can be attached to other small particles in the air. When concentrated sulfuric acid is mixed with water, the solution gets very hot. Concentrated sulfuric acid can catch fire or explode when it comes into contact with many chemicals, including acetone, alcohols, and metals. When heated, it emits highly toxic fumes that include sulfur trioxide. It is capable of igniting finely divided combustible materials. It is incompatible or reactive with organic materials, chlorates, carbides, fulminates, water, and powdered metals. It is soluble in water and ethyl alcohol. Identification: Health effects: Sulfuric acid is very corrosive and irritating and can cause direct effects on the skin, eyes, and respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts when there is direct exposure to sufficient concentrations. It can cause blindness if thrown on the eyes. Drinking concentrated sulfuric acid can burn the mouth and throat, erode a hole in the stomach, and possibly cause death. Breathing sulfuric acid mists can resultin tooth erosion and respiratory tract irritation. Breathing small droplets of sulfuric acid that may be in polluted air may make it more difficult to breathe. Breathing large amounts of sulfuric acid droplets will also decrease the ability of the respiratory tract to remove other small particles in the respiratory tract. Exposure through inhalation, ingestion, or contact with the skin can cause pulmonary edema, bronchitis, emphysema, conjunctivitis, stomatis, tracheobronchitis, and dermatitis. Exposure Values: Economics: U.S. manufacturers of sulfuric acid are Agrium US Inc, Hq, Soda Springs, ID; AK Steel Corporation, Middletown, OH; Akzo Nobel Chemicals Inc., Axis, AL; AlliedSignal Inc., East Randolph Rd., Hopewell, VA; Amoco Corporation, Hq, Texas City, TX; ASARCO Incorporated, West Paisano, East Helena, MT; El Paso, TX; Hayden, AZ; BHP Copper, San Manuel, AZ; Big River Zinc Corporation, Sauget, IL; BIT Manufacturing, Inc., Copperhill, TN; Cargill Fertilizer, Inc., Bartow, FL; Riverview, FL; CF Industries, Bartow, FL, Plant City, FL, Chevron Products Co., Barber's Point, HI, El Segundo, CA; Chino Mines Company, Hurley, NM; CITGO Petroleum Corporation, Tulsa, OK; Lake Charles, LA; Conoco Inc., Lake Charles, LA; Coulton Chemical Company, Cairo, OH, Oregon, OH; Cyprus Climax Metals Company, Fort Madison, IA; Cyprus Miami Mining Corporation, Claypool, AZ; Cytec Industries, Avondale, LA, Westwego, LA; The Doe Run Company, Herculaneum, MO; DuPont, Darrow, LA, La Porte, TX, North Bend, OH, Wurtland, KY, Richmond, VA, El Dorado Chemical Company, El Dorado, AR; Electronic Chemicals Inc., Tulsa, OK; Farmland Hydro, L.P., Bartow, FL; General Chemical Corporation, Parsippany, NJ; Anacortes, WA; Claymont, DE; Richmond, CA ; Harcros Pigments Inc., Easton, PA, ICI Americas Inc., Beaumont, TX; Belle, WV; Memphis, TN, IMC-Agrico Company, Donaldson, LA, New Wales Facility, Mulberry, FL, Nichols, FL, Bartow, FL, South Pierce, FL, Uncle Sam, LA; Industrial Chemicals Corporation, Penuelas, PR; Kemira Pigments, Inc., Savannah, GA; Kennecott Corporation, Magna (Bacchus), UT; Koch Sulfur Products Company, De Soto, KS, Riverton, WY, Rosemount, MN; Wilmington, NC; Langeloth Metallurgical Company, Langeloth, PA; Marsulex, Inc., Sayreville, NJ; Mississippi Phosphates Corp., Pascagoula, MS Mobil Oil Corporation, Pasadena, TX; Mulberry Phosphates, Mulberry, FL; Newmont Gold Company, Carlin, NV; Ohio Edison Company, Niles, OH; Olin Corporation, Beaumont, TX, Shreveport, LA; PCS Nitrogen Fertilizer, L.P., Geismar, LA; PCS Phosphate Co. Inc., Aurora, NC, White Springs, FL, Peridot Chemicals (Georgia), Inc., Augusta, GA; Peridot Chemicals (New Jersey), Inc., Newark, NJ; Phelps Dodge Corporation, Hidalgo, NM; Piney Point Phosphates, Inc., Piney Point, FL, Public Service Company of New Mexico, Waterflow, NM; Waterflow, NM, PVS Chemicals, Inc. (Illinois), Chicago, IL; PVS Chemicals, Inc. (New York), Buffalo, NY; Rhone-Poulenc Inc., Baton Rouge, LA; Baytown, TX; Carson, CA; Hammond, IN; Houston, TX; Martinez, CA; Rohm and Haas Texas Inc., Deer Park, TX; Savage Zinc, Inc., Clarksville, TN; 76 Products Company, Wilmington, CA; SF Phosphates Limited Company, Rock Springs, WY; J.R. Simplot Co., Lathrop, CA; Pocatella, ID; Southern States Phosphate and Fertilizer Co., Savannah, GA; Star Enterprise, Delaware City, DE; Tampa Electric Company, Polk County, FL; Tosco Corporation, Martinez, CA; Ultramar Diamond Shamrock Corp., Dumas, TX, U.S. Agri-Chemicals Corporation, Fort Meade, FL, Fort Meade, FL, Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation, Wheeling, WV, Raw Materials Division, Wheeling, WV; Follansbee, WV, Zinc Corporation of America, Monaca, PA; and Monaca, PA. Regulation: The Department of Transportation forbids spent sulfuric acid to be transported on passenger-carrying aircraft or railcars. Sulfuric acid is a hazardous substance under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Sulfuric acid is regulated under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, under which it is exempt from a tolerance for pesticide chemicals in or on raw agricultural commodities, and from the requirement of a tolerance when used in accordance with good agricultural practice as a herbicide in the production of garlic and onions, and in the production of potatoes. Sulfuric acid is also regulated under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. The EPA Offices of Solid Waste and Toxic Substances also regulate sulfuric acid. Under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, releases of more than one pound of sulfuric acid into the air, water, or land must be reported annually and entered into the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). Under Section 302 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act of 1986, sulfuric acid is listed as an Extremely Hazardous Substance and has a threshold planning quantity of 1,000 lbs. National Overview of 1998 Toxics Release Inventory See EPA's Toxic Release Inventory. Notations: The NIOSH recommended exposure limits (RELs) are time-weighted average (TWA) concentrations for up to a 10-hour workday during a 40-hour workweek. A short-term exposure limit (STEL) is designated by "ST" preceding the value; unless noted otherwise, the STEL is a 15-minute TWA exposure that should not be exceeded at any time during a workday. A ceiling REL is designated by "C" preceding the value. Any substance that NIOSH considers to be a potential occupational carcinogen is designated by the notation "Ca." The OSHA permissible exposure limits (PEL) are found in Tables Z-1, Z-2, and Z-3 of the OSHA General Industry Air Contaminants Standard (29 CFR 1910.1000). Unless noted otherwise, PEL are TWA concentrations that must not be exceeded during any 8-hour workshift of a 40-hour workweek. A STEL is designated by "ST" preceding the value and is measured over a 15-minute period unless noted otherwise. OSHA ceiling concentrations (designated by "C" preceding the value) must not be exceeded during any part of the workday; if instantaneous monitoring is not feasible, the ceiling must be assessed as a 15-minute TWA exposure. In addition, there are a number of substances from Table Z-2 (e.g., beryllium, ethylene dibromide, etc.) that have PEL ceiling values that must not be exceeded except for specified excursions. For example, a "5-minute maximum peak in any 2 hours" means that a 5-minute exposure above the ceiling value, but never above the maximum peak, is allowed in any 2 hours during an 8-hour workday. Information Sources:
Originally published in Environment Writer by the National Safety Council. Reprinted with permission. Environment Writer Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography Office of Marine Programs Narragansett, RI 02882 Tel: 401-874-6211; Fax: 401-874-6485 Disclaimer * Copyright 2002-2006 * All rights reserved. * University of Rhode Island |