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Phosphorus pentachloride																				Related Pages
										May 1994
Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health Concentrations (IDLH)
**CAS number:** 10026–13–8
**NIOSH REL:** 1 mg/m3 TWA
**Current OSHA PEL:** 1 mg/m3 TWA
**1989 OSHA PEL:** Same as current PEL
**1993-1994 ACGIH TLV:** 0.85 mg/m3 (0.1 ppm) TWA
**Description of substance:** White to pale-yellow, crystalline solid with a pungent, unpleasant odor.
**LEL:** . . Noncombustible Solid
**Original (SCP) IDLH:** 200 mg/m3
**Basis for original (SCP) IDLH:** The chosen IDLH is based on an analogy with phosphorus trichloride (PCl3) and statements by Henderson and Haggard [1943] that 2 to 4 ppm Pcl3 is the maximum concentration allowable for short exposures (0.5 to 1 hour) and 50 to 90 ppm is dangerous for short exposures. Therefore, 200 mg/m3 (24 ppm) is chosen as the IDLH for phosphorus pentachloride.
**Short-term exposure guidelines:** None developed
**ACUTE TOXICITY DATA:**
**Lethal concentration data:**

**Species**
    **Reference**
    **LC50**
    **LCLo**
    **Time**
    **Adjusted 0.5-hr** **LC (CF)**
    **Derived value**Mouse
    Henderson & Haggard 1943
    -----
    1,020 mg/m3
    10 min
    704 mg/m3 (1.45)
    70 mg/m3Rat
    Molodkena 1973
    205 mg/m3
    -----
    ?
    ?
    ?**Lethal dose data:**
 
 **Species**
    **Reference**
    **Route**
    **LD50** **(mg/kg)**
    **LDLo** **(mg/kg)**
    **Adjusted LD**
    **Derived value**Rat
    Molodkena 1973
    oral
    660
    -----
    4,620 mg/m3
    462 mg/m3**Other data:** The vapors of phosphorus pentachloride decompose in the presence of moisture with the subsequent liberation of hydrochloric and phosphoric acids [Henderson and Haggard 1943].
 **Human data:** None relevant for use in determining the revised IDLH.
 
 **Revised IDLH:** 70 mg/m3**Basis for revised IDLH:** The revised IDLH for phosphorus pentachloride is 70 mg/m3 based on acute inhalation toxicity data in animals [Henderson and Haggard 1943]. This may be a conservative value due to the lack of relevant acute toxicity data for workers. However, an IDLH of 70 mg/m3 for phosphorus pentachloride (Pcl5) is roughly equivalent on a "chlorine basis" to the revised IDLH of 50 ppm (i.e., 75 mg/m3) for hydrogen chloride (HCl) which may be appropriate since PCl5 decomposes in the presence of moisture to HCl [Henderson and Haggard 1943].**REFERENCES:**
1. Henderson Y, Haggard HW [1943]. Noxious gases. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Reinhold Publishing Corporation, p. 134.
2. Molodkena NN [1973]. Toxicological comparisons of chlorine phosphate compounds (POCl3, PCl3, PCl5) by single and repeated exposures. Toksikol Nov Prom Khim Vesh *13*:104 (in Russian).

			
							
								Page last reviewed:  December 4, 2014						Content
							source: 	National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health NIOSH Publications & Products
Immediately Dangerous To Life or Health (IDLH) Values
Table of IDLH Values
Criteria for Determining IDLH Values
Historical Documentation
Original (SCP) Values
Abbreviations for IDLH Documentation
Abbreviations for Journal Titles Follow NIOSH Facebook
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