Common Name: METHYL ISOPROPYL KETONE CAS Number: 563-80-4 RTK Substance number: 1271 DOT Number: UN 2397 Date: February 1986 Revision: January 2001 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- HAZARD SUMMARY * Methyl Isopropyl Ketone can affect you when breathed * If you think you are experiencing any work-related health in and by passing through your skin. problems, see a doctor trained to recognize occupational * Contact can irritate the skin and eyes. Prolonged contact diseases. Take this Fact Sheet with you. can cause drying and cracking of the skin. * ODOR THRESHOLD = 3.1 ppm. * Breathing Methyl Isopropyl Ketone can irritate the nose, * The range of accepted odor threshold values is quite throat and lungs causing coughing and wheezing. broad. Caution should be used in relying on odor alone as * Higher exposure can cause headache, dizziness, a warning of potentially hazardous exposures. lightheadedness and passing out. Very high levels can cause coma and even death. WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS * Methyl Isopropyl Ketone is a FLAMMABLE LIQUID NIOSH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is and a FIRE HAZARD. 200 ppm averaged over a 10-hour workshift. IDENTIFICATION ACGIH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is Methyl Isopropyl Ketone is a colorless liquid with an 200 ppm averaged over an 8-hour workshift. Acetone-like odor. It is used as a solvent. * The above exposure limits are for air levels only. When REASON FOR CITATION skin contact also occurs, you may be overexposed, even * Methyl Isopropyl Ketone is on the Hazardous Substance though air levels are less than the limits listed above. List because it is cited by ACGIH, DOT and NIOSH. * This chemical is on the Special Health Hazard Substance WAYS OF REDUCING EXPOSURE List because it is FLAMMABLE. * Where possible, enclose operations and use local exhaust * Definitions are provided on page 5. ventilation at the site of chemical release. If local exhaust ventilation or enclosure is not used, respirators should be HOW TO DETERMINE IF YOU ARE BEING worn. EXPOSED * Wear protective work clothing. The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers * Wash thoroughly immediately after exposure to Methyl to label chemicals in the workplace and requires public Isopropyl Ketone and at the end of the workshift. employers to provide their employees with information and * Post hazard and warning information in the work area. In training concerning chemical hazards and controls. The addition, as part of an ongoing education and training federal OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 1910.1200, effort, communicate all information on the health and requires private employers to provide similar training and safety hazards of Methyl Isopropyl Ketone to potentially information to their employees. exposed workers. * 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. METHYL ISOPROPYL KETONE 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 Methyl Isopropyl In evaluating the controls present in your workplace, consider: Ketone: (1) how hazardous the substance is, (2) how much of the substance is released into the workplace and (3) whether * Contact can irritate the skin and eyes. harmful skin or eye contact could occur. Special controls * Breathing Methyl Isopropyl Ketone can irritate the nose, should be in place for highly toxic chemicals or when throat and lungs causing coughing and wheezing. significant skin, eye, or breathing exposures are possible. * Higher exposure can cause headache, dizziness, lightheadedness and passing out. Very high levels can In addition, the following controls are recommended: cause coma and even death. * Where possible, automatically pump liquid Methyl Chronic Health Effects Isopropyl Ketone from drums or other storage containers The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at to process containers. some time after exposure to Methyl Isopropyl Ketone and * Before entering a confined space where Methyl Isopropyl can last for months or years: Ketone may be present, check to make sure that an explosive concentration does not exist. Cancer Hazard * According to the information presently available to the Good WORK PRACTICES can help to reduce hazardous New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, exposures. The following work practices are recommended: Methyl Isopropyl Ketone has not been tested for its ability to cause cancer in animals. * Workers whose clothing has been contaminated by Methyl Isopropyl Ketone should change into clean Reproductive Hazard clothing promptly. * According to the information presently available to the * Contaminated work clothes should be laundered by New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, individuals who have been informed of the hazards of Methyl Isopropyl Ketone has not been tested for its exposure to Methyl Isopropyl Ketone. ability to affect reproduction. * Eye wash fountains should be provided in the immediate work area for emergency use. Other Long-Term Effects * If there is the possibility of skin exposure, emergency shower facilities should be provided. * Prolonged contact can cause drying and cracking of the * On skin contact with Methyl Isopropyl Ketone, skin. immediately wash or shower to remove the chemical. At MEDICAL the end of the workshift, wash any areas of the body that may have contacted Methyl Isopropyl Ketone, whether Medical Testing or not known skin contact has occurred. * Do not eat, smoke, or drink where Methyl Isopropyl There is no special test for this chemical. However, if illness Ketone is handled, processed, or stored, since the occurs or overexposure is suspected, medical attention is chemical can be swallowed. Wash hands carefully before recommended. eating, drinking, smoking, or using the toilet. Any evaluation should include a careful history of past and PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT present symptoms with an exam. Medical tests that look for damage already done are not a substitute for controlling WORKPLACE CONTROLS ARE BETTER THAN exposure. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT. However, for some jobs (such as outside work, confined space entry, jobs Request copies of your medical testing. You have a legal done only once in a while, or jobs done while workplace right to this information under OSHA 1910.1020. controls are being installed), personal protective equipment may be appropriate. METHYL ISOPROPYL KETONE page 3 of 6 OSHA 1910.132 requires employers to determine the HANDLING AND STORAGE appropriate personal protective equipment for each hazard and to train employees on how and when to use protective * Prior to working with Methyl Isopropyl Ketone you equipment. should be trained on its proper handling and storage. * Methyl Isopropyl Ketone is not compatible with The following recommendations are only guidelines and may OXIDIZING AGENTS (such as PERCHLORATES, not apply to every situation. PEROXIDES, PERMANGANATES, CHLORATES, NITRATES, CHLORINE, BROMINE and FLUORINE); Clothing STRONG BASES (such as SODIUM HYDROXIDE and * Avoid skin contact with Methyl Isopropyl Ketone. Wear POTASSIUM HYDROXIDE); and REDUCING solvent-resistant gloves and clothing. Safety equipment AGENTS. suppliers/manufacturers can provide recommendations on * Store in tightly closed containers in a cool, well-ventilated the most protective glove/clothing material for your area. operation. * Sources of ignition, such as smoking and open flames, are * All protective clothing (suits, gloves, footwear, headgear) prohibited where Methyl Isopropyl Ketone is used, should be clean, available each day, and put on before handled, or stored. work. * Metal containers involving the transfer of Methyl Isopropyl Ketone should be grounded and bonded. Eye Protection * Use only non-sparking tools and equipment, especially * Wear indirect-vent, impact and splash resistant goggles when opening and closing containers of Methyl Isopropyl when working with liquids. Ketone. * Wear a face shield along with goggles when working with corrosive, highly irritating or toxic substances. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Respiratory Protection Q: If I have acute health effects, will I later get chronic IMPROPER USE OF RESPIRATORS IS DANGEROUS. health effects? Such equipment should only be used if the employer has a A: Not always. Most chronic (long-term) effects result written program that takes into account workplace conditions,