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of chemical per kilogram of body weight (mg/kg). A typical LD50 statement includes the substance, the route of entry, and the animal species, as follows: Aniline LD50 oral-rat: 250 mg/kg. In plain English, this LD50 statement says that 250 mg of aniline for every kilogram body weight of rat, when administered in a single dose by mouth, will cause the death of 50% of the test animals. LD50 values are commonly determined for the following routes of exposure: ingestion (oral), skin absorption, subcutaneous or intravenous injection, and inhalation.
GHS (Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals) classifies the health hazards due to the acute toxicity of chemicals into four categories:
• Fatal if swallowed: 0–50 mg/kg
• Toxic if swallowed: 0–300 mg/kg
• Harmful if swallowed: 300–2000 mg/kg
• May be harmful if swallowed: > 2000 mg/kg
It should be noted that no LD50 data exists for humans. Data from test
animals is used to estimate the possible acute toxicity of a chemical on a human being. Toxicity data should therefore be used to evaluate the relative toxicity of various chemicals and which chemicals may require greater precautions when handled. The lower the LD50 value, the more toxic the substance. The chart below lists the LD50 values for common chemicals. LD50 values have not been measured for all chemicals— even some known hazardous chemicals, such as lead compounds, do not have published LD50 values.
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“How Toxic Is Toxic?”
Toxicology is defined as the study of the adverse effects of natural and synthetic chemical substances on living organisms. In evaluat- ing the relative toxicity of chemicals, scientists study their mode of action, physical and biological effects, and how they can be detected. All chemicals are toxic at some level. Thus, every chemical will be toxic under some set of exposure conditions. The reverse, however, is also true—every chemical has some set of exposure conditions in which it is not toxic. The risk or hazard posed by a chemical is further determined by the route and duration of exposure. There are three major routes by which a chemical can enter the body: by ingestion, inhalation, and skin absorption. Practicing strict chemical hygiene is thus the most effective way to reduce the hazards and work safely with chemicals.
Acute toxicity, which is defined as the immediate effect of a substance as a result of a single dose, can be measured experimentally. Chronic toxicity, resulting from low doses of a chemical repeated over long periods of time, is more difficult to test and is usually evaluated based on epidemiological evidence. Acute toxicity is determined on the basis of test dosages made on experimental animals under controlled conditions. The most common measure toxicologists use to compare acute toxicity is the LD50 value, which stands for “lethal dose, 50%.” The LD50 value for a chemical is the amount of chemical that can be expected to cause death in one-half (50%) of a group of a particular animal species. Since the amount required to cause death is related to body weight, the LD50 value is expressed in milligrams
Substance LD50 per kilogram
Acetaldehyde ..............................................661 mg Acetanilide..................................................800 mg Acetic Acid ...............................................3310 mg Acetic Anhydride......................................1780 mg Acetone .....................................................5800 mg Acetyl Salicylic Acid ..................................200 mg Adenine.......................................................227 mg Aluminum Chloride..................................3311 mg Aluminum Nitrate.....................................3671 mg Ammonium Chloride ...............................1650 mg Ammonium Hydroxide ..............................350 mg Ammonium Molybdate ..............................333 mg Ammonium Nitrate ..................................2217 mg Ammonium Persulfate................................689 mg Ammonium Sulfate ..................................2840 mg Ammonium Thiocyanate............................750 mg n-Amyl Alcohol ........................................ 5.66 mL Aniline ........................................................250 mg Aniline Hydrochloride................................840 mg Anthranilic Acid .......................................5410 mg Antimony Trichloride .................................525 mg Arsenic Trioxide ........................................14.6 mg Barium Acetate ...........................................921 mg Barium Carbonate.......................................418 mg Barium Chloride (intraperitoneal mouse) ....51 mg Barium Nitrate ............................................355 mg Benzaldehyde ...........................................1300 mg Benzene ......................................................930 mg Benzoic Acid ............................................1700 mg Benzyl Alcohol .........................................1230 mg Bismuth.....................................................5000 mg Bismuth Nitrate ........................................4042 mg Boric Acid.................................................2660 mg Brilliant Green ............................................313 mg Bromine ....................................................2600 mg
Substance LD50
per kilogram
Substance LD50 per kilogram
Copper(I) Oxide..........................................470 mg Copper(II) Acetate ......................................710 mg Copper(II) Carbonate ...............................1350 mg Copper(II) Chloride ....................................140 mg Copper(II) Nitrate .......................................940 mg Copper (II) Sulfate......................................300 mg Crystal Violet ..............................................420 mg Cyclohexanol ............................................1400 mg Cyclohexene .............................................1920 mg 2,6-Di-t-Butyl-4-Methyl Phenol ................890 mg p-Dichlorobenzene .....................................500 mg 2,4-Dichlorophenoxy Acetic Acid .............375 mg 1,4 Dioxane...............................................4200 mg Diphenylamine .........................................1120 mg Dodecyl Alcohol .....................................12800 mg Dodecyl Sulfate, Sodium Salt ..................1300 mg Eosin Y ......................................................2344 mg Erythrosin B..............................................1840 mg Ethyl Acetate.............................................5620 mg Ethyl Ether ................................................1215 mg Ethylenediamine .......................................1200 mg Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid (mouse) ...30 mg Ethylene Dichloride....................................670 mg Ethylene Glycol ........................................4700 mg Fast Green FCF.........................................2000 mg Ferrous Ammonium Sulfate .....................3250 mg Formaldehyde .............................................100 mg Formic Acid ..............................................1100 mg Glutaraldehyde ...........................................134 mg Glyoxal .....................................................2960 mg Hexamethylenediamine ..............................750 mg Hexyl Alcohol.............................................720 mg Hydroquinone .............................................302 mg Hydroxylamine Hydrochloride ..................141 mg
“HOW TOXIC IS TOXIC?” continued on next page.
Bromobenzene ..........................................2383 mg Bromoform ...............................................1147 mg n-Butyl Alcohol ..........................................790 mg sec-Butyl Alcohol .....................................2193 mg tert-Butyl Alcohol .....................................2743 mg Butyric Acid..............................................2000 mg Cadmium ..................................................2330 mg Cadmium Chloride .......................................88 mg Cadmium Nitrate ........................................300 mg Caffeine.......................................................192 mg Calcium Chloride, dihydrate ....................1000 mg Calcium Chloride, anhydrous...................1000 mg Calcium Fluoride ......................................4250 mg Calcium Hypochlorite ................................850 mg Calcium Nitrate ........................................3900 mg Camphor (mouse) .....................................1310 mg Carbon Disulfide ......................................1200 mg Cesium Chloride.......................................2600 mg Cetyl Alcohol............................................5000 mg Chloroform .................................................695 mg
Never ingest any laboratory chemical, no matter the LD50.
Chromium(ic) Chloride ............................1790 Chromium(ic) Nitrate ...............................3250 Chromium Trioxide ......................................80 mg Cinnamaldehyde .......................................2220 mg Citric Acid, anhydrous..............................3000 mg Cobalt Carbonate ........................................640 mg Cobalt Chloride ..........................................766 mg Cobalt Nitrate .............................................691 mg Cobalt Oxide.............................................5000 mg Cobalt Sulfate .............................................582 mg Colchicine (mouse).........................................6 mg Copper(I) Chloride .....................................140 mg
mg mg