Substance profile
Perfluorooctanoic acid
Perfluorooctanoic acid is a white to off-white powder.
01 · Identification
What Perfluorooctanoic acid is
Perfluorooctanoic acid is a white to off-white powder. Its molecular formula is C8HF15O2 and its molecular weight is 414.07 g/mol. It boils at 192 °C, melts at 54.3 °C.
Under the GHS it carries the signal word Danger.
02 · Identifiers
Perfluorooctanoic acid identifiers and molecular data
Perfluorooctanoic acid CAS number and EC number
Perfluorooctanoic acid molecular formula and molecular weight
03 · GHS classification
Perfluorooctanoic acid hazard classification
Harmonised classification under CLP Annex VI. This is the legally binding classification in the EU; other jurisdictions may differ.
Perfluorooctanoic acid pictograms and signal word
Perfluorooctanoic acid hazard class and category
| Hazard class | Category | From code | Pictogram |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acute toxicity - oral GHS chapter 3.1 | Category 4 | H302 | GHS07 |
| Acute toxicity - inhalation GHS chapter 3.1 | Category 4 | H332 | GHS07 |
| Serious eye damage/eye irritation GHS chapter 3.3 | Category 1 | H318 | GHS05 |
| Carcinogenicity GHS chapter 3.6 | Category 2 | H351 | GHS08 |
| Reproductive toxicity GHS chapter 3.7 | Category Lactation | H362 | — |
| Specific target organ toxicity - repeated exposure GHS chapter 3.9 | Category 1 | H372 | GHS08 |
Perfluorooctanoic acid hazard statements (H-codes)
| Code | Hazard statement |
|---|---|
| H351 | Suspected of causing cancer <state route of exposure if it is conclusively proven that no other routes of exposure cause the hazard>. |
| H360D | May damage the unborn child. |
| H362 | May cause harm to breast-fed children. |
| H332 | Harmful if inhaled. |
| H302 | Harmful if swallowed. |
| H372 | Causes damage to organs <or state all organs affected, if known> through prolonged or repeated exposure <state route of exposure if it is conclusively proven that no other routes of exposure cause the hazard>. |
| H318 | Causes serious eye damage. |
This page lists only the codes assigned to Perfluorooctanoic acid. 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 Perfluorooctanoic acid
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 Perfluorooctanoic acid 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
Perfluorooctanoic acid precautionary statements
CLP Annex VI assigns 15 precautionary statements to Perfluorooctanoic acid. 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.
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
Perfluorooctanoic acid 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 | перфлуорооктанова киселина |
| Spanish español | Ácido perfluorooctanoico |
| Czech čeština | pentadekafluoroktanová kyselina |
| Danish dansk | perfluoroctansyre |
| German Deutsch | Perfluoroctansäure |
| Estonian eesti | perfluorooktaanhape |
| Greek ελληνικά | υπερφθοροοκτανικό οξύ |
| English English | perfluorooctanoic acid |
| French français | acide perfluorooctanoïque |
| Croatian hrvatski | perfluoroktanska kiselina |
| Italian italiano | acido perfluoroottanoico |
| Latvian latviešu | perfluoroktānskābe |
| Lithuanian lietuvių | perfluoroktano rūgštis |
| Hungarian magyar | perfluoroktánsav |
| Maltese Malti | aċidu perfluworoottanojku |
| Dutch Nederlands | perfluoroctaanzuur |
| Polish polski | kwas perfluorooktanowy |
| Portuguese português | ácido perfluorooctanóico |
| Romanian română | acid perfluorooctanoic |
| Slovak slovenčina | kyselina pentadekafluóroktánová |
| Slovenian slovenščina | perfluorooktanojska kislina |
| Finnish suomi | perfluorioktaanihappo |
| Swedish svenska | perfluoroktansyra |
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
Perfluorooctanoic acid GHS label elements
Everything CLP Annex VI fixes for Perfluorooctanoic acid, laid out the way it appears on a label. The greyed lines are the parts only the supplier can fill in.
Danger
Perfluorooctanoic acid
- Suspected of causing cancer <state route of exposure if it is conclusively proven that no other routes of exposure cause the hazard>.
- May damage the unborn child.
- May cause harm to breast-fed children.
- Harmful if inhaled.
- Harmful if swallowed.
- Causes damage to organs <or state all organs affected, if known> through prolonged or repeated exposure <state route of exposure if it is conclusively proven that no other routes of exposure cause the hazard>.
- Causes serious eye damage.
- Obtain special instructions before use.
- 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.
- Wear protective gloves/protective clothing/eye protection/face protection/hearing protection/…
- IF SWALLOWED:
- IF INHALED:
- IF IN EYES:
- IF exposed or concerned:
- Immediately call a POISON CENTER/doctor/…
- Call a POISON CENTER/doctor/… if you feel unwell.
- Get medical advice/attention.
- Get medical advice/attention if you feel unwell.
- Rinse mouth.
- Remove contact lenses, if present and easy to do. Continue rinsing.
Supplier name, address and telephone number· Product identifier·Nominal quantity
Need this as an actual label? Open Perfluorooctanoic acid in the GHS label constructor →
07 · Health hazards
Perfluorooctanoic acid health hazards and exposure limits
Perfluorooctanoic acid hazard summary
Danger of cutaneous absorption; [MAK] A skin, eye, and respiratory tract irritant; [ICSC] A corrosive substance that can cause injury to the skin, eyes, and respiratory tract; Inhalation may cause chemical pneumonitis; [MSDSonline] See Perfluorobutyric acid. See Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid. Serum PFAS concentrations were not associated with increased cardiometabolic risk measures in this population of firefighters. [PMID 33105404]
Source: Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases
Perfluorooctanoic acid carcinogenicity classification
Under the conditions of these 2-year feed studies, there was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity of PFOA in male Hsd:Sprague Dawley SD rats based on the increased incidence of hepatocellular neoplasms (predominately hepatocellular adenomas) and increased incidence of acinar cell neoplasms (predominately acinar cell adenomas) of the pancreas. The additional effect of perinatal exposure in combination with postnatal exposure was uncertain and limited to the observation of hepatocellular carcinomas.
Source: US National Toxicology Program · TR-598: Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of Perfluorooctanoic Acid (CASRN 335-67-1) Administered in Feed to Sprague Dawley (Hsd:Sprague Dawley SD) Rats (Revised) (2023 )
An IARC group and a CLP classification answer different questions. IARC judges whether the evidence for cancer in humans is strong enough; CLP Annex VI is the legally binding EU classification. A substance can carry one and not the other.
08 · Physical and chemical properties
Perfluorooctanoic acid 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.
Perfluorooctanoic acid boiling point
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boiling point | 192 °C (377.6 °F) | HSDB | |
| 189 °C (372.2 °F) | ICSC | ||
| 189 °C (372.2 °F) | at 760 mmHg | DOE PAC |
Perfluorooctanoic acid melting point
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melting point | 54.3 °C (129.7 °F) | HSDB | |
| 53 °C (127.4 °F) | range, midpoint shown | ICSC |
Perfluorooctanoic acid density
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Density | 1.79 g/cm³ | ICSC | |
| 1.792 g/cm³ | at 20 °C | HSDB |
Perfluorooctanoic acid solubility
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solubility | In water, 4340 mg/L at 24.1 °C | at 24.1 °C | HSDB |
| In water, 3300 mg/L at 25 °C | at 25 °C | HSDB | |
| When heated to decomposition it emits toxic vapors of F(-). | decomposes | HSDB |
Perfluorooctanoic acid vapor pressure
| Property | Value | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vapor pressure | 0.15 mmHg | at 20 °C | DOE PAC |
| 0.0316 mmHg | at 25 °C | HSDB | |
| 0.15 mmHg | Haz-Map |
Values compiled from PubChem Laboratory Chemical Safety Summary. Temperatures converted to Fahrenheit for reference.
09 · Handling and storage
Perfluorooctanoic acid storage and handling
Perfluorooctanoic acid safe storage
Store only in original container. Separated from food and feedstuffs and incompatible materials. See Chemical Dangers.
Source: ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)
Perfluorooctanoic acid storage conditions
Keep container tightly closed in a dry and well-ventilated place.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Perfluorooctanoic acid incompatible materials
Incompatible materials: Bases, Oxidizing agents, Reducing agents
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Planning storage for a mix of chemicals? Check Perfluorooctanoic acid in the storage compatibility matrix →
10 · Questions
Perfluorooctanoic acid — frequently asked questions
What is the CAS number of Perfluorooctanoic acid?
The CAS number of Perfluorooctanoic acid is 335-67-1. Its EC number is 206-397-9.
What is the chemical formula of Perfluorooctanoic acid?
The molecular formula of Perfluorooctanoic acid is C8HF15O2 and its molecular weight is 414.07 g/mol.
What does a Perfluorooctanoic acid label have to show?
Under CLP Annex VI the label for Perfluorooctanoic acid carries the pictograms Health hazard, Exclamation mark and Corrosion and the signal word is Danger.
Is Perfluorooctanoic acid flammable?
CLP Annex VI assigns Perfluorooctanoic acid 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.
Is Perfluorooctanoic acid a carcinogen?
CLP Annex VI assigns Perfluorooctanoic acid H351 — suspected of causing cancer. That is category 2: the evidence points that way but is not conclusive. IARC places it in Group 1: carcinogenic to humans.
What is the boiling point of Perfluorooctanoic acid?
The boiling point reported for Perfluorooctanoic acid is 192 °C (377.6 °F) (HSDB).
What is the melting point of Perfluorooctanoic acid?
The melting point reported for Perfluorooctanoic acid is 54.3 °C (129.7 °F) (HSDB).
How should Perfluorooctanoic acid be stored?
Keep container tightly closed in a dry and well-ventilated place. (Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB))
Nearby
Substances next to Perfluorooctanoic acid
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