Chloropicrin

Synonyms

Nitrochloroform; Nitrotrichloromethane; Trichloronitromethane; [NIOSH]

Category

Fumigants

Description

Colorless to faint-yellow, oily liquid with an intensely irritating odor. [pesticide] [NIOSH]

Sources/Uses

Used as a grain, crop, and soil fumigant; also used as an intermediate in organic synthesis and a warning odorant for odorless fumigants and gases; [NIOSH Guidelines for Chemical Hazards]

Comments

Liquid causes second or third degree burns after short contact; [CHRIS] Volunteers cannot tolerate concentrations of 15 ppm for longer than one minute. Chloropicrin can cause lacrimation, vomiting, and then death from pulmonary edema. Animals in chronic inhalation studies suffer from necrosis of liver, kidney, and muscle tissues. [ACGIH] A lachrymator; [HSDB]

Restricted use as a pesticide; [NIOSH OSH Guidelines]

Reference Link #1

Biomedical References

Insufficient data

Yes

0.1 ppm

0.1 ppm

0.1 ppm

2 ppm

Excerpts from Documentation for IDLHs

Other human data: It has been reported that 4 ppm for a few seconds renders a worker unfit for activity and that a 10­minute exposure to 7.5 ppm is intolerable [Flury and Zernik 1931].

24 mm Hg

1.1 ppm

7 ppm

LC50 (rat) = 14.4 ppm/4 hr

Explanatory Notes

Odor threshold from CHEMINFO; VP from HSDB;

Reference Link #2

will not burn

0.075 ppm

0.15 ppm

1.5 ppm

Yes

Yes

Hepatoxic (a) from occupational exposure (secondary effect) or (b) in animal studies or in humans after ingestion

Skin burns

Not Classifiable

Diseases

Occupational diseases associated with exposure to this agent:

• Fumigants, acute toxic effect
• Pneumonitis, toxic

Processes

Industrial Processes with risk of exposure:

• Farming (Pesticides)