| Chemical Abstract Number (CAS #) |
87616
|
|---|
| Synonyms | 1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene |
|---|
| Analytical Methods |
EPA Method 502.2 |
|---|
EPA Method 503.1 |
EPA Method 524.2 |
EPA Method 8021A |
| Molecular Formula | C6H3Cl3 |
|---|
| Use | CHEM INTERMEDIATE EG, FOR 2,3-DICHLOROPHENOL; CONSTITUENT OF
TRICHLOROBENZENE MIXT USED FOR TERMITE CONTROL SRP: FORMER USE &
AS TRANSFORMER FLUID; DYE CARRIER & SOLVENT
Solvent for high melting products; Coolant in electrical installations & glass tempering; Polyester
dyeing; Lubricants; Heat transfer medium, insecticides.
Organic intermediate
|
|---|
| Apparent Color | PLATELETS FROM ALCOHOL; WHITE CRYSTALS
|
|---|
| Boiling Point | 221 DEG C
|
|---|
| Melting Point | 52.6 DEG C
|
|---|
| Molecular Weight | 181.46
|
|---|
| Density | 1.69
|
|---|
| Sensitivity Data | Moderately irritating to skin.
Trichlorobenzene (1,2,3-trichlorobenzene) vapors are said to be irritating to the eyes and
respiratory tract.
IRRITATING TO EYES, MUCOUS MEMBRANES.
|
|---|
| Environmental Impact | The release of 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene (1,2,3-TCB) will occur through its manufacture
and use as an industrial chemical, chemical intermediate, dielectric fluid, heat transfer medium,
and chemical solvent. If released to the soil, 1,2,3-TCB should display limited mobility, and it
would be expected to adsorb to the organic matter of soil and not readily leach into groundwater.
Examples of its presence in groundwater have been demonstrated, and thus
1,2,3-trichlorobenzene can be considered to be mobile under certain conditions.
1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene can slowly degrade in soil. If released to the water, 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene
should adsorb onto the sediment and particulate matter, and should bioconcentrate in aquatic
organisms. Hydrolysis will not occur, and biodegradation should not be an important fate process.
Volatilization from the water to the air should be rapid. If 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene is released to the
atmosphere, direct photolytic degradation is possible, but not expected to be important. The
estimated vapor phase half-life for the reaction with photochemically produced hydroxy radicals is
on the order of a few months. Exposure to 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene will mainly be due to
occupational exposure during its production, use as an intermediate, and through the use of
commercial products in which it is contained. Exposure to the general public should be through
the ingestion of contaminated water or aquatic organisms, or through inhalation near industrial
areas where it is in use.
|
|---|
| Environmental Fate | TERRESTRIAL FATE: The experimentally determined values for Koc, 589(1,2), and
for the log octanol/water partition coefficient, 4.05 , suggest that 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene should
have a low mobility in soil(4,SRC). The field determined Koc values for lake and river sediment,
5012 and 1259 respectively , suggest that adsorption to surface water sediment will be an
important fate process. 1,2,3-TCB has been shown to slowly degrade in soil(6). Laboratory
studies on the mineralization of radiolabeled 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene (50 ug/g soil) gave an average
degradation rate of 0.36 nmol/day per 20 g of soil (Nixon sandy loam(6-7).
AQUATIC FATE: If released into water, 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene would be expected to adsorb
onto the sediment and particulate matter, and to bioconcentrate in aquatic organisms. This
compound should not readily biodegrade in water, will not hydrolyze (est half-life 4.9 yr) , and
should not undergo degradation by direct photolysis. Volatilization into the atmosphere should be
rapid. With the experimentally determined Henry's Law Constant of 1.25X10-3 atm-cu m/mol ,
the half-life of 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene in a model river 1 m deep, flowing at 1 m/sec, and a wind
velocity of 3 m/sec, can be estimated at 4.9 hr(3,SRC). Reported downflux of
1,2,3-trichlorobenzene to sediment, 20 g/day which represents 1% of the daily loading from the
Niagara River .
ATMOSPHERIC FATE: If 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene is released to the atmosphere it will be
subject to reaction with photochemically produced hydroxy radicals with an estimated vapor
phase half-life of 55 days(1,SRC). It will not be expected to be subject to appreciable direct
photolysis .
|
|---|
| Drinking Water Impact | 1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene was detected in municipal discharge in Catawba Creek, NC at a
concn of between 21-46 ug/l.
DRINKING WATER: Detected at a level of approximately 0.1 ug/l in chlorinated drinking
water samples from two out of ten Canadian water treatment plants, detection limit <0.1 ug/l .
Drinking water samples from Niagara Falls, NY collected during April 11, 1979 and April 18,
1979 contained 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene at a concn of 0.38 and 0.26 ug/l, respectively .
April-Nov 1980, drinking water samples from three cities in the Lake Ontario vicinity, mean
concn 0.1 ng/l .
SURFACE WATER: 1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene has been detected in water from Lake Ontario,
Lake Erie, Lake Huron, and Lake Superior watersheds . Sept 1981 to March 1983, Niagara
River water, concn range 0.70-15 ng/l, mean concn 2.7 ng/l, median concn 2.3 ng/l . April-Nov
1980, Lake Ontario, five sites, concn range 0.1-0.2 ng/l, mean concn 0.1 ng/l; Lake Huron, five
sites, not detected, detection limit approx 0.1 ng/l; and Grand River, ten sites, max concn 0.7 ng/l,
mean concn 0.1 ng/l . Detected in Niagara River (1982) at Niagara-on-the-Lake 2.3 ng/l
average concn over five weeks. Little change in concn as a function of depth was observed .
Qualitatively identified in Narragansett Bay, RI . Water collected in the vicinity of an industrial
outfall in the Calacasieu River estuary, LA - 12 ng/l(6). Water samples collected Aug 1983 to July
1984 in the southern North Sea, 108 samples, concn range 0.1-25 ng/l, mean concn 1.4 ng/l,
median concn 0.7 ng/l(7). Water samples collected from the Rhine River during Nov 1983, one
sample, 6 ng/l(7).
GROUNDWATER: 1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene was found in two of nineteen wells two years after
a PCB/TCB spill of transformer fluid near Kingston, TN (1973), in concn of 0.18 and 0.097
ug/l .
EFFL: Identified in effluent gas from a coal-fired power plant at a concn of 3.9 ng/cu m . 2.7
ug/l found in an effluent sample collected on Sept 18, 1980 from a community septic tank serving
ninety-seven homes in Tacoma, WA . April-Nov 1980, wastewater effluents from four activated
sludge wastewater treatment plants, two discharging into Lake Ontario and two discharging into
the Grand River, concn range 2-3 ng/l, mean concn 2 ng/l . Of 250 ug/l of
1,2,3-trichlorobenzene initially in a pilot plant two stage aerated effluent treatment facility,
approximately 65% remained in the effluent of the first stage, and approximately 80% remained in
the effluent of the second stage .
|
|---|
