Right to Know Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet Common Name: CALCIUM NITRATE Synonyms: Calcium Saltpeter; Lime Nitrate; Nitrocalcite CAS Number: 10124-37-5 Chemical Name: Nitric Acid, Calcium Salt RTK Substance Number: 0324 Date: April 2009 Revision: August 2016 DOT Number: UN 1454 Description and Use EMERGENCY RESPONDERS >>>> SEE PAGE 6 Calcium Nitrate is a white to gray, odorless, crystalline (sand- Hazard Summary like) or granular solid. It is used in fertilizers, explosives and Hazard Rating NJDHSS NFPA pyrotechnics. HEALTH 2 - FLAMMABILITY 0 - REACTIVITY 3 - STRONG OXIDIZER POISONOUS GASES ARE PRODUCED IN FIRE Hazard Rating Key: 0=minimal; 1=slight; 2=moderate; 3=serious; 4=severe Reasons for Citation Calcium Nitrate is on the Right to Know Hazardous Calcium Nitrate can affect you when inhaled. Substance List because it is cited by DOT. Contact can irritate and burn the skin and eyes. Inhaling Calcium Nitrate can irritate the nose, throat and lungs. Exposure to Calcium Nitrate can cause headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Prolonged or repeated contact can cause a skin rash, dryness, itching and redness. Calcium Nitrate is not combustible, but it is a STRONG SEE GLOSSARY ON PAGE 5. OXIDIZER that enhances the combustion of other substances. FIRST AID Eye Contact Immediately flush with large amounts of water for at least 15 Workplace Exposure Limits minutes, lifting upper and lower lids. Remove contact lenses, if worn, while rinsing. No occupational exposure limits have been established for Calcium Nitrate. However, it may pose a health risk. Always Skin Contact follow safe work practices. Quickly remove contaminated clothing. Immediately wash contaminated skin with large amounts of water. Inhalation Remove the person from exposure. Begin rescue breathing (using universal precautions) if breathing has stopped and CPR if heart action has stopped. Transfer promptly to a medical facility. EMERGENCY NUMBERS Poison Control: 1-800-222-1222 CHEMTREC: 1-800-424-9300 NJDEP Hotline: 1-877-927-6337 National Response Center: 1-800-424-8802 CALCIUM NITRATE Page 2 of 6 Determining Your Exposure Reproductive Hazard According to the information presently available to the New Read the product manufacturer’s Material Safety Data Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, Calcium Sheet (MSDS) and the label to determine product Nitrate has not been tested for its ability to affect ingredients and important safety and health information reproduction. about the product mixture. Other Effects For each individual hazardous ingredient, read the New Prolonged or repeated contact can cause a skin rash, Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services dryness, itching and redness. Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet, available on the RTK Program website (http://www.state.nj.us/health/workplacehealthandsafety/ri Medical ght-to-know/) or in your facility’s RTK Central File or Hazard Communication Standard file. Medical Testing There is no special test for this chemical. However, seek You have a right to this information under the New Jersey medical attention if illness occurs or overexposure is Worker and Community Right to Know Act, the Public suspected. Employees Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH) Act if you are a public worker in New Jersey, and under the Any evaluation should include a careful history of past and federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) if you present symptoms with an exam. Medical tests that look for damage already done are not a substitute for controlling are a private worker. exposure. The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers to label chemicals in the workplace and Request copies of your medical testing. You have a legal right requires public employers to provide their employees with to this information under the OSHA Access to Employee information concerning chemical hazards and controls. Exposure and Medical Records Standard (29 CFR 1910.1020). The federal OSHA Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) and the PEOSH Hazard Communication Standard (N.J.A.C. 12:100-7) require employers to provide similar information and training to their employees. This Fact Sheet is a summary of available information regarding the health hazards that may result from exposure. Duration of exposure, concentration of the substance and other factors will affect your susceptibility to any of the potential effects described below. Health Hazard Information Acute Health Effects The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur immediately or shortly after exposure to Calcium Nitrate: Contact can irritate and burn the skin and eyes. Inhaling Calcium Nitrate can irritate the nose, throat and lungs causing coughing, wheezing and/or shortness of breath. Exposure to Calcium Nitrate can cause headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Chronic Health Effects The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at some time after exposure to Calcium Nitrate and can last for months or years: Cancer Hazard According to the information presently available to the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, Calcium Nitrate has not been tested for its ability to cause cancer in animals. CALCIUM NITRATE Page 3 of 6 Workplace Controls and Practices Eye Protection Very toxic chemicals, or those that are reproductive hazards or Wear eye protection with side shields or goggles. sensitizers, require expert advice on control measures if a less If additional protection is needed for the entire face, use in toxic chemical cannot be substituted. Control measures combination with a face shield. A face shield should not be include: (1) enclosing chemical processes for severely used without another type of eye protection. irritating and corrosive chemicals, (2) using local exhaust ventilation for chemicals that may be harmful with a single Respiratory Protection exposure, and (3) using general ventilation to control Improper use of respirators is dangerous. Respirators exposures to skin and eye irritants. For further information on should only be used if the employer has implemented a written workplace controls, consult the NIOSH document on Control program that takes into account workplace conditions, Banding at www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/ctrlbanding/. requirements for worker training, respirator fit testing, and The following work practices are also recommended: medical exams, as described in the OSHA Respiratory Protection Standard (29 CFR 1910.134). Label process containers. Provide employees with hazard information and training. At any detectable concentration, use a NIOSH approved Monitor airborne chemical concentrations. negative pressure, air-purifying, particulate filter respirator Use engineering controls if concentrations exceed with an N, R or P95 filter. More protection is provided by a recommended exposure levels. full facepiece respirator than by a half-mask respirator, and Provide eye wash fountains and emergency showers. even greater protection is provided by a powered-air Wash or shower if skin comes in contact with a hazardous purifying respirator. material. Leave the area immediately if (1) while wearing a filter or Always wash at the end of the workshift. cartridge respirator you can smell, taste, or otherwise detect Change into clean clothing if clothing becomes Calcium Nitrate, (2) while wearing particulate filters contaminated. abnormal resistance to breathing is experienced, or (3) eye Do not take contaminated clothing home. irritation occurs while wearing a full facepiece respirator. Get special training to wash contaminated clothing. Check to make sure the respirator-to-face seal is still good. Do not eat, smoke, or drink in areas where chemicals are If it is, replace the filter or cartridge. If the seal is no longer being handled, processed or stored. good, you may need a new respirator. Wash hands carefully before eating, smoking, drinking, Consider all potential sources of exposure in your workplace. applying cosmetics or using the toilet. You may need a combination of filters, prefilters or cartridges to protect against different forms of a chemical (such as In addition, the following may be useful or required: vapor and mist) or against a mixture of chemicals. Where the potential for high exposure exists, use a NIOSH Use a vacuum or a wet method to reduce dust during clean- approved supplied-air respirator with a full facepiece up. DO NOT DRY SWEEP. operated in a pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode. For increased protection use in combination with an auxiliary self-contained breathing apparatus operated in a pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode. Personal Protective Equipment The OSHA Personal Protective Equipment Standard (29 CFR 1910.132) requires employers to determine the appropriate Fire Hazards personal protective equipment for each hazard and to train If employees are expected to fight fires, they must be trained employees on how and when to use protective equipment. and equipped as stated in the OSHA Fire Brigades Standard (29 CFR 1910.156). The following recommendations are only guidelines and may Calcium Nitrate is not combustible, but it is a STRONG not apply to every situation. OXIDIZER that enhances the combustion of other substances. Gloves and Clothing Use water in flooding quantities or extinguish fire using an Avoid skin contact with Calcium Nitrate. Wear personal agent suitable for type of surrounding fire. protective equipment made from material which can not be POISONOUS GASES ARE PRODUCED IN FIRE,