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Tetramethyl lead (as Pb)																				Related Pages
										May 1994
Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health Concentrations (IDLH)
**CAS number:** 75–74–1
**NIOSH REL:** 0.075 mg/m3 TWA [skin]
Current OSHA PEL: 0.075 mg/m3 TWA [skin]
1989 OSHA PEL: Same as current PEL
**1993-1994 ACGIH TLV:** 0.15 mg/m3 TWA [skin]
**Description of substance:** Colorless liquid (unless dyed red, orange, or blue) with a fruity odor.
**LEL:** . . Unknown
**Original (SCP) IDLH:** 40 mg Pb/m3
**Basis for original (SCP) IDLH:** The chosen IDLH is based on an analogy with tetraethyl lead which has an IDLH of 40 mg Pb/m3.
**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
    Castellino et al.1963
    40,800 mg/m3
    -----
    30 min
    31,626 mg Pb/m3 (1.0)
    3,163 mg Pb/m3Rat
    Cremer &Calloway 1961
    8,870 mg/m3
    -----
    30 min
    6,876 mg Pb/m3 (1.0)
    688 mg Pb/m3Mouse
    Marhold 1986
    -----
    8,500 mg/m3
    30 min
    6,589 mg Pb/m3 (1.0)
    659 mg Pb/m3**Lethal dose data:**
 
 **Species**
    **Reference**
    **Route**
    **LD50** **(mg/kg)**
    **LDLo** **(mg/kg)**
    **Adjusted LD**
    **Derived value**Rabbit G. pigRat
    Akatsuka 1973 Gekkan Yakuji 1980Magistretti et al. 1963
    oral oraloral
    ----- 109105
    24 ----------
    130 mg Pb/m3591 mg Pb/m3570 mg Pb/m3
    13 mg Pb/m359 mg Pb/m357 mg Pb/m3**Other animal data:** It has been reported that signs of acute tetramethyl lead intoxication in rats were similar to that seen after acute poisoning with tetraethyl lead [ACGIH 1991].
 **Human data**: None relevant for use in determining the revised IDLH.
 
 Revised IDLH: 40 mg Pb/m3 [Unchanged] Basis for revised IDLH: Based on acute inhalation toxicity data in animals [Castellino et al. 1963; Cremer and Calloway 1961; Marhold 1986], a value of 150 mg Pb/m3 (i.e., 2,000 times the NIOSH REL) would have been appropriate for tetramethyl lead. However based on an analogy to tetraethyl lead which has a revised IDLH of 40 mg Pb/m3, the original IDLH for tetramethyl lead (40 mg Pb/m3) is not being revised at this time**REFERENCES:**
1. ACGIH [1991]. Tetramethyl lead. In: Documentation of the threshold limit values and biological exposure indices. 6th ed. Cincinnati, OH: American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, pp. 1521-1523.
2. Akatsuka K [1973]. Tetraalkyl lead poisoning. Sangyo Igaku (Japanese Journal of Industrial Health) *15*:3-66.
3. Castellino N, Rossi A, Mole R [1963]. Miscellanea: toxicity of tetramethyl lead solutions to mice and rabbits. Brit J Ind Med *20*:63-65.
4. Cremer JE, Calloway S [1961]. Further studies on the toxicity of some tetra and trialkyl lead compounds. Brit J Ind Med *18*:277-282.
5. Gekkan Yakuji (Pharmaceuticals Monthly) [1980]; *22*(3):455-459 (in Japanese).
6. Magistretti M, Zurlo N, Scollo F, Pacillo D [1963]. Tossicita comparata del piombo tetra-etile e del piombo tetra-metile. Med Lav *54*:486-495 (in Italian).
7. Marhold J [1986]. Prehled Prumyslove Toxikologie, Organicke Latky. Prague, Czechoslovakia: Avicenum, p. 1258 (in Czechoslovakian).

			
							
								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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