Chlorine dioxide

Description
The major use of chlorine dioxide is as a bleach in a number of industries: in cleaning and de-
tanning of leather, and as a bleaching agent for wood pulp, fats and oils, cellulose, flour,
textiles, and beeswax.

Chlorine dioxide is registered as a bactericide, fungicide and algaecide. It is used to disinfect

human drinking water systems, commercial water cooling tower systems, and metal cutting
fluids. It may also be used to disinfect dairy farm animals and milking equipment, in eating
establishments and food processing/handling areas and around the house. It is used
extensively in Europe for disinfecting drinking water, and its use there is increasing as well as
in North America and Australia, as an alternative to chlorine due to lesser problems with
disinfection by-products.

Approved food additive in Australia (No. 926).

Substance details
Substance name: Chlorine dioxide

CASR number: 10049-04-4

Molecular formula: ClO2

Synonyms: chlorine peroxide; chloroperoxyl; doxcide 50; chlorine oxide; chlorine(IV) oxide

Physical properties
Chlorine dioxide is a strongly oxidising, yellow to reddish-yellow gas or liquid with a
pungent, sharp odour. The odour is similar to that of chlorine and nitric acid. Soluble in water,
alkaline, and sulfuric acid solutions. It is normally supplied as a less than 10% solution in
cold water.

Melting Point: -59C

Boiling Point: 11C

Specific Gravity: 3.09

Vapour Density: 2.3

1 ppm = 2.8 mg/m3

Formula mass 67.452

Chemical properties
Chlorine dioxide gas is flammable, and is violently explosive in air at concentrations over
10%. It can be ignited by almost any form of energy, including sunlight, heat, or sparks.
Chlorine dioxide is strongly oxidising, and reacts violently with organic chemicals and can be
detonated by sunlight, heat, or contact with mercury or carbon monoxide.

Health Effect
Description

Acute health effects: The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur immediately
or shortly after exposure to chlorine dioxide: irritate the nose and throat, causing coughing
and chest pain; eye irritation with watery eyes and seeing halos around lights; breathing
chlorine dioxide can irritate the lungs causing coughing and/or shortness of breath. Higher
exposures can cause a build-up of fluid in the lungs (pulmonary oedema), a medical
emergency but which might not occur for 24 hours, with severe shortness of breath and
possibly death.

Chronic health effects: The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at some
time after exposure to chlorine dioxide and can last for months or years: irritate the lungs;
repeated exposure may cause bronchitis to develop with cough, phlegm, and/or shortness of
breath. Permanent lung damage may occur, especially with repeated exposure to the vapours.
There is limited evidence that chlorine dioxide may damage the developing foetus.

Entering the body

The substance can be absorbed into the body by inhalation, ingestion of food that has been
treated with chlorine dioxide, or skin contact.

Exposure

People living near industries that produce or use chlorine dioxide. From using disinfectants or
bleaches that contain chlorine dioxide. From foods and drinking water that have been treated
with chlorine dioxide.

Health guidelines

Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (NHMRC and ARMCANZ, 1996):

Maximum of 1 mg/L (i.e. 0.001 g/L)

Worksafe Australia:
Maximum time weighted exposure (TWA) level: 0.1 ppm 0.28 mg/m3
Maximum short term exposure level (STEL): 0.3 ppm 0.83 mg/m3

Enviromental effect
Description
Chlorine dioxide is well established to be harmful to all forms of life. Ranked in the USA as
one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%) to ecosystems.

Entering the environment

Most releases will be as the gas to the atmosphere or in wastewater streams from plants that
make or use chlorine dioxide. Because of its high reactivity chlorine dioxide will not persist
long in the air, water, or soil environments - up to minutes in air and up to hours in the others.

Where it ends up

In the atmosphere it will photolyze rapidly, with a tropospheric half-life of a few seconds.
Because of its high reactivity, chlorine dioxide will breakdown rapidly in natural waters (that
is, waters that contain moderate amounts of organic matter). Nevertheless, this substance is
considered hazardous to the environment with special attention required for water organisms.

The breakdown products are chloride ion and oxidised products of organic matter.

Environmental guidelines

No national guidelines.

Source of Emission
Industry sources

Paper and allied products industries; textile mills; chemical industries: food processing
industries; drinking water treatment plants; and commercial water-cooling tower systems.

Diffuse sources, and industry sources included in diffuse emissions data

Residues from food and drinking water that have been treated with chlorine dioxide.

Natural sources

No specific information. Because of the nature of its high chemical reactivity, it is unlikely to
occur naturally.

Transport sources

None known.

Consumer products

Possibly in some disinfectants and bleaches. Foods and drinking water that have been treated
with chlorine dioxide.

http://www.npi.gov.au/resource/chlorine-dioxide
Sources used in preparing this information

Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council

(ANZECC) (1992), Australian Water Quality Guidelines for Fresh and Marine
Waters.

CalEPA Air Resources Board Toxic Air Contaminant Summary (accessed,

June, 1999)

ChemFinder WebServer Project (1995) (accessed, June, 1999)

Environmental Defense Fund - Summary, Uses, Consumer Products, Rank

(industrial, by quantity) (accessed, June, 1999)

IPCS International Chemical Safety Card (accessed, June, 1999)

Meagher, D (1991), The Macmillan Dictionary of The Australian

Environment, Macmillan Education Australia Pty Ltd.

National Environment Protection Council (1998), National Environment

Protection Measure for the National Pollutant Inventory. (accessed, March,
1999)

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and Agriculture

and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand
(ARMCANZ) (1996), Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

New Jersey Health and Safety (accessed, June, 1999)

Richardson, M (1992), Dictionary of Substances and their Effects, Royal

Society of Chemistry, Clays Ltd, England.

Sax, N.I. Dangerous Properties of Industrial Materials. 6th Ed. Van Nostrand
Reinhold. New York. 1984. pp. 1505-1506.

Sittig, M (1991), Handbook of Toxic and Hazardous Chemicals and

Carcinogens, 3rd edition, Noyes Publications, USA .

Technical Advisory Panel (1999), Final Report to the National Environment

Protection Council.

US Department of Health and Human Services (1990), NIOSH Pocket Guide

to Chemical Hazards, Publication No. 90-117.

USEPA Integrated Risk Information System Report (accessed, June, 1999)

USEPA Toxic Release Inventory Fact Sheet (accessed, June, 1999)

Worksafe Australia (accessed, June, 1999)