. "Appendix B: Laboratory Chemical Safety Summaries." Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 1995.
The following HTML text is provided to enhance online
readability. Many aspects of typography translate only awkwardly to HTML.
Please use the page image
as the authoritative form to ensure accuracy.
Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals
LABORATORY CHEMICAL SAFETY SUMMARY: HYDROGEN PEROXIDE
Substance
Hydrogen peroxide
(Hydrogen dioxide)
CAS 7722-84-1
Formula
HOOH
Physical Properties
Colorless liquid
bp 150 °C, mp -0.4 °C
Miscible in all proportions in water
Odor
Slightly pungent, irritating odor
Vapor Density
1.15 (air = 1.0)
Vapor Pressure
1 mm Hg at 15.3 °C
5 mm Hg at 30 °C
Flash Point
Noncombustible
Autoignition Temperature
None
Toxicity Data
LD50 oral (rat)
75 mg/kg (70%)
LD50 skin (rabbit)
700 mg/kg (90%)
LD50 skin (rabbit)
9200 mg/kg (70%)
LC50 inhal (rat)
>2000 ppm (90%)
PEL (OSHA)
1 ppm (1.4 mg/m3) (90%)
TLV-TWA (ACGIH)
1 ppm (1.4 mg/m3) (90%)
Major Hazards
Contact with certain metals and organic compounds can lead to fires and explosions; concentrated solutions can cause severe irritation or burns of the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes.
Toxicity
Contact with aqueous concentrations of less than 50% cause skin irritation, but more concentrated solutions of H202 are corrosive to the skin. At greater than 10% concentration, hydrogen peroxide is corrosive to the eyes and can cause severe irreversible damage and possibly blindness. Hydrogen peroxide is moderately toxic by ingestion and slightly toxic by inhalation. This substance is not considered to have adequate warning properties.
Hydrogen peroxide has not been found to be carcinogenic in humans. Repeated inhalation exposures produced nasal discharge, bleached hair, and respiratory tract congestion, with some deaths occurring in rats and mice exposed to concentrations greater than 67 ppm.
Flammability and Explosibility
Hydrogen peroxide is not flammable, but concentrated solutions may undergo violent decomposition in the presence of trace impurities or upon heating.
