Section 1 - CHEMICAL PRODUCT AND COMPANY IDENTIFICATION

PRODUCT NAME

VINYL 2-ETHYLHEXANOATE

NFPA

PRODUCT USE

Intermediate in the production of polymers; emulsion paints. Drier

SYNONYMS

C10-H18-O2, CH3(CH2)3CH(C2H5)CO2CH=CH2, "hexanoic acid, 2-ethyl-, vinyl ester",
"hexanoic acid, 2-ethyl-, vinyl ester", "2-ethylhexanoic acid, vinyl ester", "2-
ethylhexanoic acid, vinyl ester", "2-ethylhexoic acid, vinyl ester", "2-ethylhexoic
acid, vinyl ester", vinyl-2-ethylhexoate, vinyl-2-ethylhexoate

Section 2 - HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION

CANADIAN WHMIS SYMBOLS

EMERGENCY OVERVIEW

RISK

Irritating to skin.
HARMFUL - May cause lung damage if swallowed.
Harmful to aquatic organisms.

POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS

ACUTE HEALTH EFFECTS

SWALLOWED

  Swallowing of the liquid may cause aspiration into the lungs with the risk of chemical pneumonitis; serious consequences may result. (ICSC13733).  Accidental ingestion of the material may be damaging to the health of the individual.  Vinyl esters, when ingested, can cause damage to the brain and spinal cord, resulting in muscular weakness and loss of sensation in the limbs.  

EYE

  There is evidence that material may produce eye irritation in some persons and produce eye damage 24 hours or more after instillation. Severe inflammation may be expected with pain. There may be damage to the cornea. Unless treatment is prompt and adequate there may be permanent loss of vision. Conjunctivitis can occur following repeated exposure.  

SKIN

  Skin contact is not thought to have harmful health effects, however the material may still produce health damage following entry through wounds, lesions or abrasions.  Repeated exposure may cause skin cracking, flaking or drying following normal handling and use.  Entry into the blood-stream, through, for example, cuts, abrasions or lesions, may produce systemic injury with harmful effects. Examine the skin prior to the use of the material and ensure that any external damage is suitably protected.  The material may cause moderate inflammation of the skin either following direct contact or after a delay of some time. Repeated exposure can cause contact dermatitis which is characterized by redness, swelling and blistering.  

INHALED

  Inhalation may produce health damage*.  The material is not thought to produce respiratory irritation (as classified using animal models). Nevertheless inhalation of vapors, fumes or aerosols, especially for prolonged periods, may produce respiratory discomfort and occasionally, distress.  Inhalation of vapours may cause drowsiness and dizziness. This may be accompanied by narcosis, reduced alertness, loss of reflexes, lack of coordination and vertigo.  Inhalation of aerosols (mists, fumes), generated by the material during the course of normal handling, may be damaging to the health of the individual.  Inhalation hazard is increased at higher temperatures.  The main effects of simple esters are irritation, stupor and insensibility. Headache, drowsiness, dizziness, coma and behavioral changes may occur. Respiratory symptoms may include irritation, shortness of breath, rapid breathing, throat inflammation, bronchitis,  lung inflammation and pulmonary edema, sometimes delayed. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and cramps are observed. Liver and kidney damage may result from massive exposures.  Inhalation of vinyl esters is associated with damage to the nervous system. Exposure for extended periods can cause headache, dizziness, nausea, blurred vision and depression which is characterized by dizziness, drowsiness and headache, slowed reaction time, slurred speech and coma. Respiratory depression in serious cases of poisoning can cause death.  

CHRONIC HEALTH EFFECTS

  Prolonged or repeated skin contact may cause drying with cracking,irritation and possible dermatitis following.  There has been some concern that this material can cause cancer or mutations but there is not enough data to make an assessment.  Limited evidence suggests that repeated or long-term occupational exposure may produce cumulative health effects involving organs or biochemical systems.  There is some evidence that inhaling this product is more likely to cause a sensitization reaction in some persons compared to the general population.  There is limited evidence that, skin contact with this product is more likely to cause a sensitization reaction in some persons compared to the general population.  Exposure to the material may cause concerns for human fertility, on the basis that similar materials provide some evidence of impaired fertility in the absence of toxic effects, or evidence of impaired fertility occurring at around the same dose levels as other toxic effects, but which are not a secondary non-specific consequence of other toxic effects..  Based on experience with animal studies, there is a possibility that exposure to the material may result in toxic effects to the development of the fetus, at levels which do not cause significant toxic effects to the mother.  Exposure to vinyl esters for extended periods of time can cause nervous system damage, developmental defects and cancer. Fetal malformations and deaths can occur at concentrations below which the mother is affected; at higher levels, there is an increased risk of miscarriage.  2-Ethylhexanoic acid (2-EHA) its esters and its salts are of concern to human health because of their potential to induce carcinogenicity, liver toxicity and developmental/reproductive toxicity. 2-EHA is of low acute oral and dermal toxicity, is a mild skin irritant and a severe eye irritant. It is not mutagenic in Ames test, but is capable of inducing chromosome aberration and sister chromatid exchanges in vitro, liver toxicity and liver tumours after repeated dose treatment, In addition, 2-EHA acid has been associated with reproductive and developmental toxicity in experimental animals.  2-EHA is quickly resorbed orally, dermally and following inhalation and almost fully excreted mainly  in urine. As in the case of fatty acids, degradation mainly takes place by means of peroxisomal  beta-oxidation.  Various studies on reproduction toxicity have produced indications of an embryotoxic effect of 2-EHA. After oral administration, NOAEL values for maternal toxicity and foetotoxic effects of 2-EHA were determined in rabbits at 25 and >250 mg/kg body weight/day and in rats at 250 and 100 mg/kg body weight/day. The foetotoxic findings in rats were based on a reduced skeleton ossification at the next higher dose (250 mg/kg body weight/day). No teratogenic effects were observed in this study. In comparison with the structural isomer valproic acid, a known human teratogen, 2-EHA does have similar reprotoxic effects at maternal toxic doses in animal experiments but a far lower potency  Following sub-chronic oral administration of 2-EHA, critical effects like liver changes (higher relative liver weight, histological changes in hepatocytes) were observed in rats and mice and histological renal tubule results were observed in mice. Furthermore, statistically significant, higher cholesterol values were found in all treated male rats (61, 303 and 917 mg/kg body weight/day) and in male and female mice in the middle and high dose groups (885-3139 mg/kg body weight/day). In rats the maximum dose with no adverse effect (NOAEL) was 61 mg/kg body weight/day  In bacterial test systems, mutagenicity studies produced negative findings. In test systems  with mammalian cells, by contrast, the findings were weakly positive. Cytogenetic and SCE studies involving CHO cells were positive, one SCE test in human lymphocytes was questionably positive and one experiment concerning tritium-thymidine incorporation into the DNA of mouse lymphocytes was negative. Furthermore, An unpublished micronucleus study on the bone marrow of CD-1 mice was conducted in compliance with OECD Guideline 474. No significant increase in the micronuclei was observed at doses of 400, 800 or 1,600 mg/kg body weight (Inveresk Research International Ltd, 1994). Furthermore, in vitro and in vivo genotoxicity data (micronucleus test, dominant lethal test) are available for 2-  ethylhexanol which is rapidly and quantitatively converted into 2-EHA in metabolism studies. This data do not indicate any genotoxic potential which means that such an effect of 2-EHA is not likely either. As 2-EHA can induce both DNA synthesis and inhibition of intercellular communication in hepatic cells, a tumour-promoting potential in rodents, comparable to that of other peroxisome proliferators, cannot be ruled out. The carcinogenic effect of peroxisome proliferators in rodents (e.g. of di(2-  ethylhexyl)phthalate, DEHP) is not deemed to be relevant for humans.  Calcium/zinc and barium/zinc salts of 2-EHA are used as thermo-stabilisers for PVC, together with co-stabilisers like polyols or epoxy compounds, in order to capture the hydrochloride cleaved during the thermal loading of PVC; in addition various salts are used in other food and beverage containers as plasticisers. The migration of 2-EHA from the sealing compounds in the metal lids. has been demonstrated in food contamination. The potential for human exposure to 2-EHA therefore is significant.