| Chemical Abstract Number (CAS #) |
591786
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| Synonyms | 2-Hexanone |
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Methyl butyl ketone |
| Analytical Methods |
EPA Method 524.2 |
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EPA Method 8240B |
EPA Method 8260A |
| Molecular Formula | C6H12O |
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| Use | Solvent for lacquers, ink thinners, nitrocellulose, resins, oils, fats and waxes
It is a medium evaporating solvent for nitrocellulose acrylates, vinyl, and alkyd coatings.
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| Apparent Color | COLORLESS LIQUID
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| Odor | Characteristic acetone like odor, but more pungent
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| Boiling Point | 128 deg C
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| Melting Point | -57 deg C
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| Molecular Weight | 100.16
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| Density | 0.8113 at 20 deg C/4 deg C
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| Odor Threshold Concentration | ODOR 3 PPM: 3= EASILY NOTICEABLE; IRRITATION 2 PPM: 2= FAINT.
0.28-0.35 mg/cu m
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| Sensitivity Data | IRRITATION OF EYES AND NOSE WAS OBSERVED IN MEN EXPOSED TO 6500
AND 20000 PPM FOR 1/4 TO 1 MIN AND EVEN 1000 PPM WAS DISAGREEABLE AND
IRRITANT.
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| Environmental Impact | The release of 2-hexanone to the environment is expected to occur through its
manufacture, formulation, and use as a specialized organic solvent. Important among these is
volatilization to the atmosphere during the drying and curing of coatings in which it is used. In the
atmosphere, reaction with photochemically produced hydroxyl radicals should be the most rapid
method of degradation, with an estimated half-life on the order of two days. Other atmospheric
chemical reactions, such as direct photochemical degradation, the reaction with nitrate radicals,
and the reaction with ozone, is expected to occur at a much slower rate. The relatively high water
solubility of 2-hexanone suggests that rain washout may be an important fate process. If released
to soil, 2-hexanone is expected to display high mobility, and is capable of undergoing rapid
biodegradation. If released to water, 2-hexanone would not be expected to undergo hydrolysis,
adsorb to sediment and suspended material, or bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms. Volatilization
from both water and soil to the atmosphere is expected to be an important fate process. Human
exposure to small quantities of 2-hexanone is expected to occur through the ingestion of natural
and processed foods in which it has been detected. On a commercial basis, exposure is expected
to occur through the inhalation of vapors during its manufacture, formulation, and use as a
solvent. For the general population, inhalation of 2-hexanone vapors is expected to occur during
the use, drying, and curing of coatings in which it is contained as a solvent.
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| Environmental Fate | TERRESTRIAL FATE: If spilled onto soil, 2-hexanone should readily leach through soil,
as an estimated Koc of 134 suggests high mobility(1,SRC). This compound is capable of rapid
biodegradation in soil(2,3). A vapor pressure of approximately 12 mm Hg at 25 deg C ,
combined with a Henry's Law constant of 3.39X10-5 atm cu-m/mol at 20 deg C suggests
that volatilization from soil to the atmosphere should be an important fate process.
AQUATIC FATE: If released to water, 2-hexanone should be expected to undergo rapid
biodegradation. With a Henry's Law constant of 3.39X10-5 at 20 deg C, volatilization from water
should be an important fate process. The estimated half-life for volatilization from a model
river 1 m deep, flowing at 1 m/sec, and with a wind velocity of 3 m/sec is 1.2 days(1,SRC). The
half-life for volatilization from a model pond can be estimated at 19 days(2,SRC). 2-Hexanone
should not hydrolyze, and adsorption to sediment should not be an important fate process. With
an estimated BCF of 6(3,SRC), 2-hexanone should not be expected to bioaccumulate in aquatic
organisms.
ATMOSPHERIC FATE: If released to the atmosphere various removal pathways are available
for 2-hexanone. The estimated half-life for the reaction with photochemically produced hydroxyl
radicals is 2.3 days(1,SRC). Although 2-hexanone is a candidate for direct photochemical
degradation, the reaction rate for this process should be much less than for other atmospheric
chemical reactions (ie reaction with hydroxyl radicals, nitrate radicals and ozone), and thus should
not be an important fate process(2,SRC). The water solubility for 2-hexanone (1.74X10 4 ppm at
20 deg C) suggests that rain washout may be an important fate process.
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| Drinking Water Impact | SURFACE WATER: Found in an on-site lagoon at an unauthorized hazardous waste
disposal site in Lang township, NJ, at a maximum concn of 30 ug/l, avg concn of 20 ug/l .
2-Hexanone was detected in Lake Erie at a concn of 1 ug/l .
GROUNDWATER: 2-Hexanone was found in Biscayne Aquifer groundwater in the vicinity of an
inactive drum recycling facility in Dade County, FL, 1982, concn equal to 87 ug/l . Found in
two well water samples at an unauthorized hazardous waste disposal site in Lang township, NJ,
maximum concn 14000 ug/l, avg concn 7135 ug/l . 1984, detected in three of eleven on site
wells at an abandoned landfill in Tybouts Corner, DE, concn range 6.1-91 ug/l .
EFFL: 2-Hexanone was found in process water from in-situ coal gasification in Gillette, WY (7
ppm), in the aqueous condensate from low-Btu gasification of rosebud coal in Morgantown, WV
(202 ppm), and in retort water from in-situ oil shale processing at Rock Springs, WY (53
ppm) . Found in the leachate of various municipal landfills at an avg concn of 0.148 mg/l .
Identified in leachate discharge into a ditch near an abandoned landfill in Tybouts Corner, DE, not
detected - 380 ug/l . Detected in one out of sixty-three effluent and twenty two intake waters
from a wide range of chemical manufacturing in areas across the USA .
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