Substance profile
Nicotine
Nicotine is a colorless to pale yellow, oily liquid with a fish-like odor when warm.
01 · Identification
What Nicotine is
Nicotine is a colorless to pale yellow, oily liquid with a fish-like odor when warm. Its molecular formula is C10H14N2 and its molecular weight is 162.23 g/mol. It boils at 247 °C, melts at -79 °C, is slightly soluble in water.
Under the GHS it carries the signal word Danger. It is classed as teratogens.
02 · Identifiers
Nicotine identifiers and molecular data
Nicotine CAS number and EC number
Nicotine molecular formula and molecular weight
Other names for Nicotine
- nicotine (ISO)
- 3-[(2S)-1-methylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridine
03 · GHS classification
Nicotine hazard classification
Harmonised classification under CLP Annex VI. This is the legally binding classification in the EU; other jurisdictions may differ.
Nicotine pictograms and signal word
Nicotine hazard class and category
| Hazard class | Category | From code | Pictogram |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acute toxicity - oral GHS chapter 3.1 | Category 1 or 2 | H300 | GHS06 |
| Acute toxicity - dermal GHS chapter 3.1 | Category 1 or 2 | H310 | GHS06 |
| Acute toxicity - inhalation GHS chapter 3.1 | Category 1 or 2 | H330 | GHS06 |
| Hazardous to the aquatic environment - chronic GHS chapter 4.1 | Category 2 | H411 | GHS09 |
Where two values are shown with “or”, the hazard statement is shared by more than one category or by more than one class, and the code alone does not say which. H272, for example, belongs to oxidising liquids and to oxidising solids — the physical state decides. The binding answer for a specific entry is in the CLP Annex VI table itself.
Nicotine hazard statements (H-codes)
| Code | Hazard statement |
|---|---|
| H330 | Fatal if inhaled. |
| H310 | Fatal in contact with skin. |
| H300 | Fatal if swallowed. |
| H411 | Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects. |
This page lists only the codes assigned to Nicotine. The full reference lives on the hazard statements hub, the precautionary statements hub and the GHS pictograms hub.
Safety Data Sheet
Getting an SDS for Nicotine
A Safety Data Sheet is written for a product, not for a substance: the supplier of the grade you actually buy issues it, so two suppliers of Nicotine issue two different sheets. That is why there is no single authoritative SDS for a substance to download — what there is, is the job of collecting the sheets for the products you hold and keeping them current as suppliers revise them.
04 · Precautionary statements
Nicotine precautionary statements
CLP Annex VI assigns 13 precautionary statements to Nicotine. They are grouped the way a label groups them: what to do before handling, what to do when something has already happened, how to store it and how to dispose of it.
Prevention
What to do before and during handling so the hazard never happens.
Response
What to do once exposure, spillage or fire has already happened.
Disposal
What has to happen to the contents and the empty container.
Reading the notation. … is a blank the supplier fills in — not a truncated sentence.· [square brackets] mark a part printed only when it applies.
05 · Names in the regulation
Nicotine name in 23 EU languages
CLP Annex VI Part 3 is published in every language edition of the regulation, and the identification column is written out in each of them. Nothing below is translated by us: each line is the name as that edition prints it. Under Art. 18(2) the substance name from Annex VI is a lawful product identifier, so this is the wording to put on a label going to that market — and where the cell lists several designations, any one of them qualifies.
| Language | Name in CLP Annex VI Part 3 |
|---|---|
| Bulgarian български | никотин (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-метилпиролидин-2-ил]пиридин |
| Spanish español | Nicotina (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirrolidn-2-il]piridina |
| Czech čeština | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-methylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridin |
| Danish dansk | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-methylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridin |
| German Deutsch | Nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-Methylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridin |
| Estonian eesti | nikotiin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metüülpürrolidiin-2-üül]püridiin |
| Greek ελληνικά | nicotine (νικοτίνη) (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-μεθυλοπυρρολιδιν-2-υλο]πυριδίνη |
| English English | nicotine (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-methylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridine |
| French français | nicotine (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-méthylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridine |
| Croatian hrvatski | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-metilpirolidin-2-il]piridin |
| Italian italiano | nicotina (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirrolidin-2-il]piridina |
| Latvian latviešu | nikotīns (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-metilpirolidīn-2-il]piridīns |
| Lithuanian lietuvių | nikotinas (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirolidin-2-il]piridinas |
| Hungarian magyar | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metil-pirrolidin-2-il]piridin |
| Maltese Malti | nikotina (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirrolidin-2-il]piridina |
| Dutch Nederlands | nicotine (ISO) 3-[(2 S )-1-methylpyrrolidine-2-yl]pyridine |
| Polish polski | nikotyna (ISO) 3-(N-metylopirolidyn-2-ylo)pirydyna |
| Portuguese português | nicotina (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirrolidin-2-il]piridina |
| Romanian română | nicotină (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirolidină-2-il]piridină |
| Slovak slovenčina | nikotín (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metylpyrrolidín-2-yl]pyridín |
| Slovenian slovenščina | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metilpirolidin-2-il]piridin |
| Finnish suomi | nikotiini (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metyylipyrrolidin-2-yyli]pyridiini |
| Swedish svenska | nikotin (ISO) 3-[(2S)-1-metylpyrrolidin-2-yl]pyridin |
All 23 language editions of Annex VI carry this entry. Irish is the twenty-fourth official EU language and has no line here for a different reason: no consolidated CLP text has ever been published in Irish, so there is no Irish edition of Annex VI to quote a name from. Source: consolidated CLP, CELEX 02008R1272, language editions. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu — only the electronic Official Journal of the European Union is authentic.
06 · Label elements
Nicotine GHS label elements
Everything CLP Annex VI fixes for Nicotine, laid out the way it appears on a label. The greyed lines are the parts only the supplier can fill in.
Danger
Nicotine
- Fatal if inhaled.
- Fatal in contact with skin.
- Fatal if swallowed.
- Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects.
- Do not breathe dust/fume/gas/mist/vapours/spray.
- Do not eat, drink or smoke when using this product.
- Use only outdoors or in a well-ventilated area.
- Avoid release to the environment.
- Wear protective gloves/protective clothing/eye protection/face protection/hearing protection/…
- IF SWALLOWED:
- IF ON SKIN:
- IF INHALED:
- Immediately call a POISON CENTER/doctor/…
- Rinse mouth.
- Wash with plenty of water/…
- Collect spillage.
- Dispose of contents/container to …
Supplier name, address and telephone number· Product identifier·Nominal quantity
Need this as an actual label? Open Nicotine in the GHS label constructor →
07 · Health hazards
Nicotine health hazards and exposure limits
Nicotine hazard summary
The use of nicotine as an insecticide was popular in the 1920s and 1930s when cases of occupational poisoning were reported. Lethal effects are due to a curare-like respiratory arrest. [ACGIH] Symptoms of mild poisoning are nausea and vomiting. The cholinergic syndrome (diarrhea, increased salivation and respiratory secretions, and bradycardia) is seen in more severe poisoning. Seizures and respiratory depression are rare complications of severe poisoning. Green tobacco sickness due to skin absorption of nicotine has been described in workers who handle tobacco. [Ford, p. 985]
Source: Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases
Nicotine occupational exposure limits
| Limit | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| PEL | 0.5 [mg/m3] | Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases |
| PEL | 0.5 mg/m³ | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) |
| PEL | TWA 0.5 mg/m3 [skin] | The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) |
| REL | 0.5 mg/m³ | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) |
| REL | TWA 0.5 mg/m3 [skin] | The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) |
| IDLH | 5 mg/m3 (NIOSH, 2024) | CAMEO Chemicals |
| IDLH | 5.0 [mg/m3] | Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases |
| IDLH | 5 mg/cu m | Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB) |
These are United States values. The European Union sets its own indicative and binding limits, and the figure that applies at a given workplace is the one in the local regulation — not the one shown here.
08 · Physical and chemical properties
Nicotine properties
Every value is shown with the conditions it was measured under and the source it came from. Where sources disagree, all values are listed rather than one being picked — the difference is usually a different form of the substance, not an error.
Nicotine boiling point
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boiling point | 246.72 °C (476.1 °F) | at 745 mmHg | CAMEO |
| 249 °C (480.2 °F) | ICSC |
Nicotine melting point
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melting point | -79 °C (-110.2 °F) | HSDB | |
| -78.89 °C (-110 °F) | NIOSH |
Nicotine density
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Density | 1.01 g/cm³ | NIOSH | |
| 1.0092 g/cm³ | at 20 °C | HSDB | |
| 1.0097 g/cm³ | at 20 °C | CAMEO |
Nicotine solubility
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solubility | Miscible with water below 60 °C; very sol in alcohol, chloroform, ether, petroleum ether, kerosene, oils | HSDB | |
| Slightly soluble in ligroin | HSDB | ||
| In water, 1X10+6 mg/L at 25 °C (miscible) | at 25 °C | HSDB |
Nicotine vapor pressure
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vapor pressure | 0.08 mmHg | NIOSH | |
| 0.045 mmHg | at 20 °C | ICSC | |
| 0.038 mmHg | at 25 °C | HSDB |
Nicotine flash point
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flash point | 101.11 °C (214 °F) | HSDB | |
| 95 °C (203 °F) | NIOSH |
Nicotine autoignition temperature
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autoignition temperature | 243.89 °C (471 °F) | HSDB | |
| 240 °C (464 °F) | ICSC |
Nicotine lower explosive limit (LEL)
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower explosive limit (LEL) | 0.7 % by volume | HSDB | |
| 0.75 % by volume | CAMEO |
Nicotine upper explosive limit (UEL)
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper explosive limit (UEL) | 4 % by volume | HSDB |
Nicotine vapor density
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vapor density | 5.61 (air = 1) | HSDB | |
| 5.6 (air = 1) | ICSC |
Nicotine odor threshold
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odor threshold | 1.90x10-5 moles/l taste detection in water (purity not specified) | HSDB | |
| 3.00x10-3 g/l taste detection in water (purity not specified) | HSDB |
Nicotine corrosivity
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corrosivity | Nicotine will attack some forms of plastics, rubber, and coatings. | HSDB |
Values compiled from PubChem Laboratory Chemical Safety Summary. Temperatures converted to Fahrenheit for reference.
09 · Fire and explosion
Nicotine fire and explosion behaviour
These are descriptions rather than measured values, so they are kept out of the table above and quoted here with the source that reported them.
Nicotine fire potential
COMBUSTIBLE WHEN EXPOSED TO HEAT OR FLAME.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
10 · Handling and storage
Nicotine storage and handling
Nicotine safe storage
Dry. Separated from strong oxidants and food and feedstuffs. Store in an area without drain or sewer access. Provision to contain effluent from fire extinguishing.
Source: ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)
Nicotine incompatible materials
... Can react with oxidizing materials.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Nicotine reactivity
An alkaloid produced from tobacco. Colorless, oily liquid, combustible, highly toxic. When heated to decomposition it emits very toxic fumes of carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen [Lewis, 3rd ed., 1993, p. 919].
Source: CAMEO Chemicals
Planning storage for a mix of chemicals? Check Nicotine in the storage compatibility matrix →
11 · Transport
Nicotine UN number and transport classification
Transport classification is a separate system from the GHS classification above. It decides how a package is marked and how a load may be carried; it does not follow from the workplace label, and the workplace label does not follow from it. The entries below are linked by CAS number, never by name.
Nicotine under UN 1654 — shipping name, class and packing group
Europe · ADR 2025, Table A
| Proper shipping name (3.1.2) | Class | Classification code | PG | Labels (column 5) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NICOTINE | 6.1 | T1 | II | |
Source: ADR 2025, Table A of Chapter 3.2 · ECE/TRANS/352 Vol. I (UNECE). Class 6.1 is “Toxic substances” (ADR 2.1.1.1).
United States · 49 CFR 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table
| Proper shipping name (column 2) | Class or division | PG | Labels (column 6) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicotine | 6.1 | II | |
Source: 49 CFR 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table · eCFR, revision 2026-08-03. Class 6.1 is “Poisonous materials” (49 CFR 173.2).
12 · Questions
Nicotine — frequently asked questions
What is the CAS number of Nicotine?
The CAS number of Nicotine is 54-11-5. Its EC number is 200-193-3.
What is the chemical formula of Nicotine?
The molecular formula of Nicotine is C10H14N2 and its molecular weight is 162.23 g/mol.
What does a Nicotine label have to show?
Under CLP Annex VI the label for Nicotine carries the pictograms Skull and crossbones and Environment and the signal word is Danger.
Is Nicotine flammable?
CLP Annex VI assigns Nicotine no flammability hazard class. That is not a statement that it cannot burn: the harmonised list only records the hazards that were assessed for it. The flash point reported for it is 101.11 °C (214 °F) (HSDB).
Is Nicotine a carcinogen?
CLP Annex VI records no harmonised carcinogenicity classification for Nicotine. Annex VI is a list of agreed classifications, not a list of substances found safe, so this is an absence of a classification rather than a clean bill of health.
What is the exposure limit for Nicotine?
The US occupational exposure limit reported for Nicotine is 0.5 [mg/m3] (Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases). Limits differ by country: the EU sets its own indicative and binding values, and the figure that applies at a given workplace is the one in the local regulation.
What is the boiling point of Nicotine?
The boiling point reported for Nicotine is 246.72 °C (476.1 °F), at 745 mmHg (CAMEO).
What is the melting point of Nicotine?
The melting point reported for Nicotine is -79 °C (-110.2 °F) (HSDB).
Nearby
Substances next to Nicotine
Keep going: substances starting with N, or search the whole database by name, CAS number, pictogram or signal word.