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Methyl vinyl ketone Chemical Sampling Information
Methyl vinyl ketone

General Description
    Synonyms: 3-Butene-2-one; Acetyl ethylene; Butenone; MVK; Methylene acetone

    OSHA IMIS Code Number: M351

    Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Registry Number: 78-94-4

    NIOSH, Registry of Toxic Effects (RTECS) Identification Number: EM9800000

    Chemical Description and Physical Properties: Colorless to yellow liquid with pungent odor.
      molecular formula: C4H6O
      molecular weight: 70.10
      boiling point: 81°C
      vapor pressure: 11 kPa @ 25°C
      melting point: -7°C
    Potentially hazardous incompatibilities: Highly flammable. Vapor/air mixtures are explosive.
Exposure Limits
    American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Threshold Limit Value (TLV): 0.2 ppm Ceiling; Skin; Sensitizer
Health Factors
    Potential symptoms: Eye, nose, throat and skin irritation; cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, labored breathing, pulmonary edema; headache, dizziness, fainting, tremor, incoordination, lowered body temperature, depressed respiratory and heart rates; nausea, vomiting; eye lacrimation, redness, pain, severe deep burns; INGES ACUTE: Burning sensation, abdominal pain; shock or collapse; SKIN ABS.: blistering of skin (by contact with liquid or high concentration of vapor); skin sensitization (with repeated or prolonged contact).

    Health Effects: Irritation-Eyes, Nose, Throat, Skin---Marked (HE14); CNS Depressant (HE8)

    Affected organs: Eyes, skin, respiratory system, CNS.

    Notes: 1) OSHA does not have a PEL for methyl vinyl ketone. 2) Vapor/air mixtures are explosive. 3) Two-week inhalational toxicology studies in rodents indicated NOAELs for lung effects in rats and mice of 2 ppm and 4 ppm, respectively, although nasal cavity lesions were observed in both species at 1 ppm. A single 6-hour exposure in rats of 8 ppm caused 100% mortality from airway necrosis, indicating a steep dose-response relationship. 4) Toxicity to respiratory and other cells may be due to a high non-enzymatic reactivity with reduced glutathione (GSH) or SH groups in proteins, although a less rapid reaction with deoxyguanosine and its 5'-monophosphate in vitro also has been reported.

    Date Last Revised: 02/23/2005

    Literature Basis:
    • International Chemical Safety Cards (WHO/IPCS/ILO): Methyl vinyl ketone.
    • NIOSH: The Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances: 3-Butene-2-one (RTECS #: EM9800000).
    • Eder, E., Hoffman, C. and Deininger, C.: Identification and characterization of deoxyguanosine adducts of methyl vinyl ketone and ethyl vinyl ketone. Genotoxicity of the ketones in the SOS Chromotest. Chem. Res. Toxicol. 4(1): 50-57, 1991.
    • Esterbauer, H., Zollner, H. and Scholz, N.: Reaction of glutathione with conjugated carbonyls. Z. Naturforsch. [C] 30(4): 466-473, 1975.
    • Morgan, D.L., et al.: Upper respiratory tract toxicity of inhaled methylvinyl ketone in F344 rats and B6C3F-1 mice. Toxicol. Sci. 58(1): 182-194, 2000.
    • Pohanish, R.P. (editor): Methyl Vinyl Ketone. In, Sittig's Handbook of Toxic and Hazardous Chemicals and Carcinogens, Fourth Ed., Vol. 2. Norwich, NY: Noyes Publications, William Andrew Publishing, 2002, pp. 1614-1616.
    • Portoghese, P.S., Kedziora, G.S., Larson, D.L., Bernard, B.K. and Hall, R.L.: Reactivity of glutathione with a,ß-unsaturated ketone flavoring substances. Food Chem. Toxicol. 27(12): 773-776, 1989.
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  Methyl vinyl ketone
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Page last updated: 06/22/2006
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