Common Name: DIMETHYLPROPANE CAS Number: 463-82-1 RTK Substance number: 0766 DOT Number: UN 2044 Date: February 1999 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- HAZARD SUMMARY WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS * Dimethylpropane can affect you when breathed in. No occupational exposure limits have been established for * Exposure to Dimethylpropane can cause skin irritation Dimethylpropane. This does not mean that this substance is and severe burns with redness, itching, and later, blisters. not harmful. Safe work practices should always be followed. * Contact with liquified gas can cause frostbite of the skin and eyes. WAYS OF REDUCING EXPOSURE * Breathing Dimethylpropane may cause headache, * Where possible, enclose operations and use local exhaust dizziness and suffocation. ventilation at the site of chemical release. If local exhaust * Dimethylpropane is a HIGHLY FLAMMABLE LIQUID ventilation or enclosure is not used, respirators should be or GAS and a DANGEROUS FIRE HAZARD. worn. IDENTIFICATION * Wear protective work clothing. * Wash thoroughly immediately after exposure to Dimethylpropane is a colorless gas or a volatile liquid. It is Dimethylpropane. used in research and in the manufacture of butyl rubber. * On skin contact with Dimethylpropane, immediately REASON FOR CITATION submerse the affected body part in warm water. * Post hazard and warning information in the work area. In * Dimethylpropane is on the Hazardous Substance List addition, as part of an ongoing education and training because it is cited by DOT and NFPA. effort, communicate all information on the health and * This chemical is on the Special Health Hazard Substance safety hazards of Dimethylpropane to potentially exposed List because it is FLAMMABLE . workers. * Definitions are provided on page 5. HOW TO DETERMINE IF YOU ARE BEING EXPOSED The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers to label chemicals in the workplace and requires public employers to provide their employees with information and training concerning chemical hazards and controls. The federal OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 1910.1200, requires private employers to provide similar training and information to their employees. * Exposure to hazardous substances should be routinely evaluated. This may include collecting personal and area air samples. You can obtain copies of sampling results from your employer. You have a legal right to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. * If you think you are experiencing any work-related health problems, see a doctor trained to recognize occupational diseases. Take this Fact Sheet with you. DIMETHYLPROPANE page 2 of 6 This Fact Sheet is a summary source of information of all WORKPLACE CONTROLS AND PRACTICES potential and most severe health hazards that may result from exposure. Duration of exposure, concentration of the Unless a less toxic chemical can be substituted for a hazardous substance and other factors will affect your susceptibility to substance, ENGINEERING CONTROLS are the most any of the potential effects described below. effective way of reducing exposure. The best protection is to --------------------------------------------------------------------------- enclose operations and/or provide local exhaust ventilation at the site of chemical release. Isolating operations can also HEALTH HAZARD INFORMATION reduce exposure. Using respirators or protective equipment is less effective than the controls mentioned above, but is Acute Health Effects sometimes necessary. The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur immediately or shortly after exposure to Dimethylpropane: In evaluating the controls present in your workplace, consider: (1) how hazardous the substance is, (2) how much of the * Exposure to Dimethylpropane can cause skin irritation substance is released into the workplace and (3) whether and severe burns with redness, itching, and later, blisters. harmful skin or eye contact could occur. Special controls * Contact with liquified gas can cause frostbite of the skin should be in place for highly toxic chemicals or when and eyes. significant skin, eye, or breathing exposures are possible. * Breathing Dimethylpropane may cause headache, dizziness and suffocation. In addition, the following controls are recommended: Chronic Health Effects * Where possible, automatically transfer Dimethylpropane The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at from cylinders or other storage containers to process some time after exposure to Dimethylpropane and can last containers. for months or years: * Before entering a confined space where Dimethylpropane may be present, check to make sure that an explosive Cancer Hazard concentration does not exist. * According to the information presently available to the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, Good WORK PRACTICES can help to reduce hazardous Dimethylpropane has not been tested for its ability to exposures. The following work practices are recommended: cause cancer in animals. * Workers whose clothing has been contaminated by Reproductive Hazard Dimethylpropane should change into clean clothing * According to the information presently available to the promptly. New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, * Contaminated work clothes should be laundered by Dimethylpropane has not been tested for its ability to individuals who have been informed of the hazards of affect reproduction. exposure to Dimethylpropane. * Eye wash fountains should be provided in the immediate Other Long-Term Effects work area for emergency use. * If there is the possibility of skin exposure, emergency * Dimethylpropane has not been tested for other chronic shower facilities should be provided. (long-term) health effects. * On skin contact with Dimethylpropane, immediately MEDICAL wash or shower to remove the chemical. * Do not eat, smoke, or drink where Dimethylpropane is Medical Testing handled, processed, or stored, since the chemical can be swallowed. Wash hands carefully before eating, drinking, There is no special test for this chemical. However, if illness smoking, or using the toilet. occurs or overexposure is suspected, medical attention is recommended. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT Any evaluation should include a careful history of past and present symptoms with an exam. Medical tests that look for WORKPLACE CONTROLS ARE BETTER THAN damage already done are not a substitute for controlling PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT. However, for exposure. some jobs (such as outside work, confined space entry, jobs done only once in a while, or jobs done while workplace Request copies of your medical testing. You have a legal controls are being installed), personal protective equipment right to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. may be appropriate. IMETHYLPROPANE page 3 of 6 OSHA 1910.132 requires employers to determine the * Metal containers involving the transfer of appropriate personal protective equipment for each hazard and Dimethylpropane should be grounded and bonded. to train employees on how and when to use protective * Use only non-sparking tools and equipment, especially equipment. when opening and closing containers of Dimethylpropane. The following recommendations are only guidelines and may not apply to every situation. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Clothing Q: If I have acute health effects, will I later get chronic * Avoid skin contact with Dimethylpropane. Wear health effects? protective gloves and clothing. Safety equipment A: Not always. Most chronic (long-term) effects result suppliers/manufacturers can provide recommendations on from repeated exposures to a chemical. the most protective glove/clothing material for your operation. Q: Can I get long-term effects without ever having short- * Where exposure to cold equipment, vapors, or liquid may term effects? occur, employees should be provided with special clothing A: Yes, because long-term effects can occur from repeated designed to prevent the freezing of body tissues. exposures to a chemical at levels not high enough to * All protective clothing (suits, gloves, footwear, headgear) make you immediately sick. should be clean, available each day, and put on before work. Q: What are my chances of getting sick when I have been exposed to chemicals? Eye Protection A: The likelihood of becoming sick from chemicals is increased as the amount of exposure increases. This is * Wear non-vented, impact resistant goggles when working determined by the length of time and the amount of with fumes, gases, or vapors. material to which someone is exposed. * Wear a face shield along with goggles when working with corrosive, highly irritating or toxic substances. Q: When are higher exposures more likely? Respiratory Protection A: Conditions which increase risk of exposure include physical and mechanical processes (heating, pouring, IMPROPER USE OF RESPIRATORS IS DANGEROUS. spraying, spills and evaporation from large surface areas Such equipment should only be used if the employer has a such as open containers), and "confined space" written program that takes into account workplace conditions, exposures (working inside vats, reactors, boilers, small requirements for worker training, respirator fit testing and rooms, etc.). medical exams, as described in OSHA 1910.134. Q: Is the risk of getting sick higher for workers than for * Engineering controls must be effective to ensure that community residents? exposure to Dimethylpropane does