Benzene

Company name

Fisher Scientific

Signal word

Danger!

SECTION 2: Hazards identification

EMERGENCY OVERVIEW Appearance clear colorless liquid. Flash Point -11 deg C Danger! Extremely flammable liquid and vapor. Vapor may cause flash fire. Harmful if swallowed, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin. Causes eye, skin, and respiratory tract irritation. Contains benzene. Benzene can cause cancer. Aspiration hazard if swallowed. Can enter lungs and cause damage. May cause blood abnormalities. May cause central nervous system effects. Target Organs: Blood, central nervous system, respiratory system, eyes, bone marrow, immune system, skin.

Potential health effects

Eye: Causes eye irritation. Skin: Causes skin irritation. Harmful if absorbed through the skin. Prolonged and/or repeated contact may cause defatting of the skin and dermatitis. Ingestion: May cause central nervous system depression, characterized by excitement, followed by headache, dizziness, drowsiness, and nausea. Advanced stages may cause collapse, unconsciousness, coma and possible death due to respiratory failure. May cause effects similar to those for inhalation exposure. Aspiration of material into the lungs may cause chemical pneumonitis, which may be fatal. Inhalation: Causes respiratory tract irritation. May cause drowsiness, unconsciousness, and central nervous system depression. Exposure may lead to irreversible bone marrow injury. Exposure may lead to aplastic anemia. Potential symptoms of overexposure by inhalation are dizziness, headache, vomiting, visual disturbances, staggering gait, hilarity, fatigue, and other symptoms of CNS depression. Chronic: May cause bone marrow abnormalities with damage to blood forming tissues. May cause anemia and other blood cell abnormalities. Chronic exposure to benzene has been associated with an increased incidence of leukemia and multiple myeloma (tumor composed of cells of the type normally found in the bone marrow). Immunodepressive effects have been reported. This substance has caused adverse reproductive and fetal effects in laboratory animals.