20 MULE TEAM Ò                                         MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEET

Tim-borÒ Industrial                      DATE OF ISSUE  June 1996

                                                                        Supersedes May 1993 Version

Chemical product and company identification

 

 
 
1   Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Product name:            Tim-bor Industrial                    MANUFACTURER:

Grade:                        Technical                                                          U.S. Borax, Inc.

Product Use:               Wood Preservative                                           26877 Tourney Road

Chemical formula:      Na2B8O134112O                                               Valencia, CA  91355-1847

Chemical name/synonyms:

                                    Disodium octaborate

                                    tetrahydrate, Tim-bor DPTÒ      EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS

Chemical family:        Inorganic borates                      24 Hr. Medical Info Service:

CAS registry number:            12280-03-4                                 (800) 228-5635 Ext 144

EPA pesticide Reg No:          1624-39                       Chemtree (Spills):  (800) 424-9300

(Refer to Section 15 for TSCA/DSI Chemical inventory listing)

 

Composition/information on ingredients

 
 
2   Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

This product contains greater than 98 percent (%) disodium octaborate tetrahydrate,

Na2B8O134112O which is hazardous under the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard and

under the Canadian Controlled Products Regulations of the Hazardous Products Act (WHMIS), based on animal toxicity studies.  Refer to Sections 3 and 11 for details on hazards.

  

Hazard Identification

 

 
 
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Emergency overview: Tim-bor Industrial is a white, odorless, powdered substance that is not flammable, combustible, or explosive and has low acute oral and dermal toxicity.                            

Potential ecological effects: Large amounts of Tim-bor Industrial can be harmful to plants and other species.  Therefore, releases to the environment should be minimized.                                              

Potential health effects  -  Routes of exposure: Inhalation is the most significant route of exposure in occupational and other settings.  Dermal exposure is not usually a concern because Tim-bor Industrial is poorly absorbed through intact skin.                       

Inhalation: Occasional mild irritation effects to nose and throat may occur from inhalation of Tim-bor Industrial dust at levels greater than 10 mg/m1.                            

Eye contact: Tim-bor Industrial is non-irritating to eyes in normal industrial use.                       

Skin contact: Tim-bor Industrial does not cause irritation to intact skin.                                               

Ingestion: Products containing Tim-bor Industrial are not intended for ingestion. Tim-bor Industrial has a low acute toxicity. Small amounts (e.g. a teaspoonful) swallowed accidentally are not likely to cause effects; swallowing amounts larger than that may cause gastrointestinal symptoms. 

Cancer: Tim-bor Industrial is not a known carcinogen.

Reproductive/developmental: Animal ingestion studies in several species, at high doses, indicate that borates cause reproductive and developmental effects.  A human study of occupational exposure to borate dust showed no adverse effect on reproduction. 

Target organs: No target organ has been identified in humans.  High dose animal ingestion studies indicate the testes are the target organs in male animals.

Hazard Identification (cont.)

 

 
 
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Signs and symptoms of exposure: Symptoms of accidental over-exposure to Tim-bor Industrial might include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, with delayed effects of skin redness and peeling.  These symptoms have been associated with the accidental over-exposure to the chemically related substance boric acid.

 

Refer to Section 11 for details on Toxicological data.

 

First aid measures

 

 

 
 
4  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Inhalation: If symptoms such as nose or throat irritation are observed, remove person to fresh air.

Eye contact: Use eye wash fountain or fresh water to cleanse eye. If irritation persists for more than 30 minutes, seek medical attention.                                             

Skin contact: No treatment necessary because non-irritating.                                                  

Ingestion: Swallowing small quantities (one teaspoon) will cause no harm to healthy adults.  If larger amounts are swallowed, give two glasses of water to drink and seek medical attention.         

Note to physicians: Observation only is required for adult ingestion in the range of 4-8 grams of Tim-bor Industrial.  For ingestion of larger amounts, maintain adequate kidney function and force fluids. Gastric lavage is recommended for symptomatic patients only.  Hemodialysis should be reserved for massive acute ingestion or patients with renal failure. Boron analyses of urine or blood are only useful for documenting exposure and should not be used to evaluate severity of poisoning or to guide treatment.

 

Refer to Section 11 for details.

 

Fire fighting measures

 

 

 
 
5  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

General hazard: None, because Tim-bor Industrial is not flammable, combustible or              

explosive.  The product is itself a flame retardant.                                                                     

Flammability classification (29 CFR 1910.1200): Non-flammable solid.

Extinguishing media: Any fire extinguishing media may be used on nearby fires.

  

Accidental release measures

 

measures

 

 

 
 
6  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

General: Tim-bor Industrial is a water-soluble white powder that may, at high concentrations, cause damage to trees or vegetation by root absorption.  (Refer to Ecological information, Section 12, for

specific information)                                                     

Land spill: Vacuum, shovel or sweep up Tim-bor Industrial and place in containers for disposal in accordance with applicable local regulations.  Avoid contamination of water bodies during clean up and disposal.                                                                                                            

Spillage into water: Where possible, remove intact containers from the water.  Advise local water authority that none of the affected water should be used for irrigation or for the abstraction of potable water until natural dilution returns the boron value to its normal environmental background level.  (Refer to Sections 12, 13, and 15 for additional information). Tim-bor Industrial is a non-hazardous waste when spilled or disposed of, as defined in the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) regulations (40 CFR 261).  (Refer to Regulatory information Section 15, for additional references.)

Handling and storage

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
7  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

General: No special handling precautions are required, but dry, indoor storage is recommended.  To maintain package integrity and to minimize caking of the product, bags should be handled on a

first-in, first-out basis.  Good housekeeping procedures should be followed to minimize dust generation and accumulation.

Storage temperature:  Ambient

Storage pressure:  Atmospheric

Special sensitivity:  Moisture (caking)

 

Exposure controls/personal protection

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
8  Chemical product and company identification                                                             

 

Engineering controls: Use local exhaust ventilation to keep airborne concentration of Tim-bor Industrial dust below permissible exposure levels.                                                     

Personal protection: Refer to label for actual regulatory personal protection requirements.  Where airborne concentrations are expected     to exceed exposure limits (e.g. confined spaces), NIOSH/MSHA certified respirators must be used.  Eye protection, protective clothing and waterproof gloves may also be warranted under certain high exposure conditions.

Occupational exposure limits: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) is treated by OSHA, Cal OSHA and ACGIH as “Particulate Not Otherwise Classified” or “Nuisance Dust”.  The OSHA/PEL (Permissible Exposure Level) is 15 mg/m3 total dust and 5 mg/m3 respirable dust.  The Cal OSHA/PEL is 10 mg/m1. The ACGIH/TLV (Threshold Limit Value) is 10 mg/m3.

 

Physical and chemical properties

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
9  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Appearance:  White, odorless powder                       

Bulk density:  320 to 480 kg/m3                                                           

Vapor pressure: Negligible @ 200 C

Solubility in water: 9.7% @ 200 C; 34.3% @ 500 C

Melting point:  8150 C

pH @ 200 C:  8.3 (3.0% solution)  7.6 (10.0% solution)

Molecular weight:  412.52

 

Stability and reactivity

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
10  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

General: Tim-bor Industrial is a stable product.

Hazardous decomposition:    None.  

Incompatible materials and conditions to avoid: Reaction with strong reducing        agents, such as metal hydrides or alkali metals, will generate hydrogen gas, which could create an explosive hazard.

 

Toxicological information

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
11  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Acute toxicity   -  Ingestion: Low acute oral toxicity;  LD50 in rats is 2,550 mg/kg of body weight

Skin/dermal: Low acute dermal toxicity; LD50 in rabbits is greater than 2,000 mg/kg of body weight. Tim-bor Industrial is poorly absorbed through intact skin.     

Inhalation: Low acute inhalation toxicity; LC50 in rats is greater than 2.0 mg/L (or g/m3).                      

Skin irritation: Non-irritant.                                       

Toxicological information (cont.)

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
11  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Eye irritation: Draize test in rabbits produced mild eye irritation effects.  Years of occupational           

exposure to Tim-bor Industrial indicates no adverse effects on human eye.  Therefore Tim-bor Industrial is not considered to be a human eye irritant in normal industrial use.                     

Sensitization: Tim-bor Industrial is not a skin sensitizer.                                                                      

Other  - Reproductive/developmental toxicity:  Animal feeding studies in rat, mouse and dog, at high doses, have demonstrated effects on fertility and testes2.  Studies with the chemically related boric acid in the rat, mouse and rabbit, at high doses, demonstrate developmental effects on the fetus, including fetal weight loss and minor skeletal variations1,4.  The doses administered were many times in excess of those to which humans would normally be exposed5.

Carcinogenicity/mutagenicity: No evidence of carcinogenicity in mice6.  No mutagenic activity was observed for boric acid in a battery of short-term mutagenicity assays. 

Human data: Human epidemiological studies show no increase in pulmonary disease in occupational populations with chronic exposures to boric acid dust and sodium borate dust.  A recent epidemiology study under the conditions of normal occupational exposure to borate dusts indicated no effect on fertility7.

 

Ecological information

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
12  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Ecotoxicity data  -  General: Boron (B) is the element in disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) which is used by convention to report borate product ecological effects. It occurs           naturally in seawater at an average concentration of 5 mg B/L and generally occurs in freshwater at concentrations up to 1 mg B/L.  In dilute aqueous solutions the predominant boron species present is undissociated boric acid.  To convert disodium octaborate tetrahydrate into the equivalent boron (B) content, multiply by 0.2096.

Phytotoxicity: Boron is an essential micronutrient for healthy growth of plants; however, it can be

harmful to boron sensitive plants in high quantities.  Care should be taken to minimize the amount of

Tim-bor Industrial released to the environment.

Algal toxicity:                                                            

Green algae, Scenedesmus subspicatus

Invertebrate toxicity8:                                              

                Daphnids, Daphnia magna straus                         

                        24-hr EC50=242mg B/L↟                      96-hr EC10=24mg B/L↟                               

Fish toxicity:

Seawater9:

Dab, Limanda limanda 96-hr LC50 = 74 mg B/L↟

Freshwater10:

Rainbow trout, S.gairdneri (embryo-larval stage)

                        24-day LC50 = 88 mg B/L↟

                        32-day LC50 = 54 mg B/L↟

Goldfish, Carassius auratus (embryo-larval stage)

7-day LC50 = 65 mg B/L↟

                        3-day LC50 = 71 mg B/L↟

Environmental fate data  - Persistence/degradation: Boron is naturally occurring and ubiquitous in the environment.  Tim-bor Industrial decomposes in the environment to natural borate.

Octanol/water partition coefficient: No value.  In aqueous solution disodium octaborate

tetrahydrate is converted substantially into undissociated boric acid.                                          

Soil mobility: Tim-bor Industrial is soluble in water and is leachable through normal soil.                      

Test substance: ↟ sodium tetraborate                      

Disposal considerations

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
13  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

Disposal guidance: Small quantities of Tim-bor Industrial can usually be disposed of at landfill sites.  No special disposal treatment is required, but local authorities should be consulted about any specific local requirements.  Tonnage quantities of product are not recommended to be sent to landfills.

Such product should, if possible, be used for     an appropriate application.                                           

RCRA (40CFR 261): Tim-bor Industrial is not listed under any sections of the Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

NPRI (Canada): Tim-bor Industrial is not listed on the Canadian National Pollutant Release Inventory.

 

Refer to section 15 for additional regulatory information.

 

Transport information

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
14  Chemical product and company identification                                                            

 

DOT hazardous classification: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial)is not regulated by the U.S. Department of  Transportation (DOT) and is therefore not considered a hazardous material/substance.              

TDG Canadian transportation: Disodium      octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) is not regulated under Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG).    

International transportation: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) has no UN Number, and is not regulated under international rail, road, water or air transport regulations.

 

Regulatory information

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
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OSHA/CalOSHA: This MSDS document meets the requirements of both OSHA (29 CFR 1910.       

1200) and CalOSHA (Title 8 CCR 5194 (g))   hazard communication standards.  Refer to                   

Section 8 for regulatory exposure limits.                       

WHMIS classification: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) is classified as Class D-Division 2A under Canadian WHMIS guidelines.                                                              

FIFRA: Tim-bor Industrial is registered with the EPA (EPA Reg. No. 1624-39) in accordance with

Section 3 of the Federal Insectide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) as a pesticide product.  Refer to EPA approved product label for additional product hazard and precautionary information.

Canadian PCP:  Tim-bor Industrial/DPT is registered with Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA)           under the Pest Control Products Act (PCP) (PCP Reg. No. 18879). 

Chemical inventory listing: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) 12280-03-4 appears on several chemical inventory lists (including the EPA TSCA inventory, Canadian DSL, European EINECS, Japanese MITI, Australian and Korean lists) under the CAS No. representing the anhydrous form of this inorganic salt.                                          

U.S. EPA TSCA Inventory  12008-41-2                  

Canadian  DSL                       12008-41-2                

EINECS                                  234-541-0                  

South Korea                           9312-3213                  

RCRA: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate is not listed as a hazardous waste under any sections of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) or regulations (40CFR 261 et seq).  Consult state and local regulations for possible water quality advisories regarding boron compounds.  

California Proposition 65: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) is not listed on the Proposition 65 list of carcinogens or reproductive toxicants.                          

Regulatory information (cont.)

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
 15

 

Superfund: CERCLA/SARA.  Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate is not listed under CERCLA or its 1986 amendments, SARA, including substances listed under Section313 of SARA, Toxic Chemicals, 42 USC 11023, 40 CFR 372.65 Section 302 of SARA, Extremely Hazardous Substances, 42 USC 11002, 40 CFR 355 or the CERCLA Hazardous Substances list, 42 USC 9604, 40 CFR 302.

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA): Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate is not regulated under the SDWA, 42 USC 300g-1, 40 CFR 141 et seq.

Clean Water Act (CWA) (Federal Water Pollution Control Act): 33 USC 1251 et seq.

a)      Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (Tim-bor Industrial) is not itself a discharge covered by any water quality criteria of Section 304 of the CWA, 33 USC 1314.

b)      It is not on the Section 307 List of Priority Pollutants, 33 USC 1317, 40 CFR 129.

c) It is not on the Section 311 List of Hazardous Substances, 33 USC 1321, 40 CFR 116.

Canadian drinking water guideline: An “Interim Maximum Acceptable Concentration” (IMAC) for boron is currently set at 5 mg B/L.

IARC: The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (a unit of the World Health Organization) does not list or categorize disodium octaborate tetrahydrate as a carcinogen

NTP Biennial Report on Carcinogens: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate is not listed.

OSHA carcinogen: Disodium octaborate tetrahydrate is not listed.

Clean Air Act (Montreal Protocol): Tim-bor Industrial was not manufactured with and does not contain any Class 1 or Class II ozone depleting substances.

 

Other information

 

 

 

measures

 

 

 
 
16

 

References                                                                

1)      Litovitz T L, Norman S A, Veltri J C, Annual Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers Data Collection System.  Am J. Emerg.Med. 4:427-458 (1986) 

2)      Weir R J, Fisher R S, Toxicol, Appl. Pharmacol, 23: 351-364 (1972)

3)      Fail et al., Fund. Appl. Toxicol 17:225-239 (1991)

4)      Price et al., J. Am. Coll. Toxicol, 14: (2), 173 (Abst. P-17) (1995)                        

5)   Murray F J, Regul. Toxicol, Pharmacol, (Dec. 1995)

5)      National Toxicology Program (NTP)-Toxicology and carcinogenesis studies of boric acid in B6C3F1 mice, Tech. Report Ser. No. 324, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. NIH Publ. No. 88-2580 (1987)

6)      Whorton et al., Occup. Environ. Med. 51: 761-767 (1994)

7)      Schoberl et al., Tenside Surfactants Detergents 25: 99-107 (1988)

8)      Hugman S J, Mance G, Water Research Centre Report 616-M (1983)

9)      Butterwick L, de Oude N, Raymond K, Ecotoxicol. Environ. Safety 17: 339-371 (1989) For general information on the toxicology of inorganic borates, see Patty’s Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology, 4th Ed. Vol. II, (1994), Chap. 42, Boron: ECETOC Tech. Report No. 63 (1995)

Product label text hazard information: Refer to EPA (United States) or PMRA (Canada) approved product specimen label for additional product hazard and precautionary information.

 

For further information contact:

 

U.S. Borax Inc.

Health & Safety                                             Technical & Sales Support

(805) 287-6050                                               (805) 287-6022