Safety data for sodium hydroxide

Hazard: harmful Hazard: Corrosive


Click here for data on sodium hydroxide in student-friendly format, from the HSci project
Glossary of terms on this data sheet.

The information on this web page is provided to help you to work safely, but it is intended to be an overview of hazards, not a replacement for a full Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). MSDS forms can be downloaded from the web sites of many chemical suppliers.

General

Physical data

Appearance: odourless white solid (often sold as pellets)
Melting point: 318 C
Boiling point: 1390 C
Vapour density:
Vapour pressure: 1 mm Hg at 739 C
Specific gravity: 2.12
Flash point: n/a
Explosion limits: n/a
Autoignition temperature:
Water solubility: High (Note: dissolution in water is highly exothermic)

Stability

Stable. Incompatible with a wide variety of materials including many metals, ammonium compounds, cyanides, acids, nitro compounds, phenols, combustible organics. Hygroscopic. Heat of solution is very high and may lead to a dangerously hot solution if small amounts of water are used. Absorbs carbon dioxide from the air.

Toxicology

Very corrosive. Causes severe burns. May cause serious permanent eye damage. Very harmful by ingestion. Harmful by skin contact or by inhalation of dust. Typical STEL 2 mg m-1.

Toxicity data
(The meaning of any abbreviations which appear in this section is given here.)
IPR-MUS LD50 40 mg kg-1

Irritation data
(The meaning of any abbreviations which appear in this section is given here.)
EYE-MKY 1%/24h sev
SKN-RBT 500 mg/24h sev
EYE-RBT 1% sev

Risk phrases
(The meaning of any risk phrases which appear in this section is given here.)
R35.

Transport information

Personal protection

Safety glasses, adequate ventilation, Neoprene or PVC gloves (use Standard EN 374 of EU Directive 89/689/EEC).

Safety phrases
(The meaning of any safety phrases which appear in this section is given here.)
S26 S37 S39 S45.

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This information was last updated on February 15, 2008. We have tried to make it as accurate and useful as possible, but can take no responsibility for its use, misuse, or accuracy. We have not verified this information, and cannot guarantee that it is up-to-date.

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