Provenance

Reference data from EU CLP Annex VI and published regulations — verify against your supplier's SDS before use.

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Substance profile

Tetrafluoroboric acid

Tetrafluoroboric acid is a colorless liquid.

CAS 16872-11-0 BF4H 87.82 g/mol Danger

01 · Identification

What Tetrafluoroboric acid is

Tetrafluoroboric acid is a colorless liquid. Its molecular formula is BF4H and its molecular weight is 87.82 g/mol. It boils at 130 °C, is very soluble in water.

Under the GHS it carries the signal word Danger. It is classed as corrosives.

02 · Identifiers

Tetrafluoroboric acid identifiers and molecular data

Tetrafluoroboric acid CAS number and EC number

CAS number16872-11-0
EC number240-898-3
Index number (CLP Annex VI)009-010-00-X

Tetrafluoroboric acid molecular formula and molecular weight

Molecular formulaBF4H
Molecular weight87.82 g/mol
Chemical class Corrosives

Other names for Tetrafluoroboric acid

  • fluoroboric acid ... %

03 · GHS classification

Tetrafluoroboric acid hazard classification

Harmonised classification under CLP Annex VI. This is the legally binding classification in the EU; other jurisdictions may differ.

Tetrafluoroboric acid pictograms and signal word

Signal wordDanger

Tetrafluoroboric acid hazard class and category

GHS hazard classes Tetrafluoroboric acid falls into
Hazard class Category From code Pictogram
Skin corrosion/irritation GHS chapter 3.2 Category 1A or 1B or 1C H314 GHS05

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.

Tetrafluoroboric acid hazard statements (H-codes)

Hazard statements assigned to Tetrafluoroboric acid
CodeHazard statement
H314 Causes severe skin burns and eye damage.

This page lists only the codes assigned to Tetrafluoroboric 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 Tetrafluoroboric 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 Tetrafluoroboric 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

Tetrafluoroboric acid precautionary statements

CLP Annex VI assigns 5 precautionary statements to Tetrafluoroboric 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.

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

Tetrafluoroboric 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 флуороборна киселина … %
Spanish español Ácido fluorobórico al … %
Czech čeština kyselina tetrafluoroboritá … %
Danish dansk flourborsyre … %
German Deutsch Borfluorwasserstoffsäure … % Tetrafluorborsäure … %
Estonian eesti fluoroboorhape … %
Greek ελληνικά φθοροβορικό οξύ … %
English English fluoroboric acid … %
French français acide fluoroborique à … %
Croatian hrvatski fluoroborna kiselina … %
Italian italiano acido fluoborico …%
Latvian latviešu fluorborskābe … %
Lithuanian lietuvių … % fluorboro rūgštis
Hungarian magyar fluorbórsav … %
Maltese Malti aċidu fluworoboriku … %
Dutch Nederlands tetrafluorboorzuur … %
Polish polski kwas tetrafluoroborowy … %
Portuguese português ácido fluorobórico a ... %
Romanian română acid fluoroboric ... %
Slovak slovenčina kyselina tetrafluoroboritá ... %
Slovenian slovenščina fluoroborova kislina ... %
Finnish suomi fluoriboorihappo… %
Swedish svenska fluorborvätesyra ... %

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

Tetrafluoroboric acid GHS label elements

Everything CLP Annex VI fixes for Tetrafluoroboric acid, laid out the way it appears on a label. The greyed lines are the parts only the supplier can fill in.

GHS05 Corrosion pictogram

Danger

Tetrafluoroboric acid

  • Causes severe skin burns and eye damage.
  • Do not breathe dust/fume/gas/mist/vapours/spray.
  • Wear protective gloves/protective clothing/eye protection/face protection/hearing protection/
  • IF SWALLOWED:
  • Immediately call a POISON CENTER/doctor/
  • Do NOT induce vomiting.

Supplier name, address and telephone number· Product identifier·Nominal quantity

Need this as an actual label? Open Tetrafluoroboric acid in the GHS label constructor →

07 · Health hazards

Tetrafluoroboric acid health hazards and exposure limits

Tetrafluoroboric acid hazard summary

Solutions 30-70% are corrosive to skin; [Quick CPC] High inhalation exposure can cause pulmonary edema; [ICSC] Reacts with water evolving heat; Corrosive to tissue; [CAMEO] Not stored in bone, like the F- ion, because excretion is more rapid than hydrolysis; Causes burns to skin and eye; Inhalation may cause pulmonary edema; [IUCLID] Causes somnolence and ataxia in oral lethal-dose studies of mice and rats; [RTECS] Causes burns; Inhalation may cause corrosive injuries to upper respiratory tract and lungs; [Alfa Aesar MSDS]

Source: Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases

08 · Physical and chemical properties

Tetrafluoroboric 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.

Tetrafluoroboric acid boiling point

Property Value Conditions Source
Boiling point 130 °C (266 °F) decomposes HSDB

Tetrafluoroboric acid density

Property Value Conditions Source
Density 1.8 g/cm³ HSDB
1.4 g/cm³ ICSC
1.84 g/cm³ at 25 °C DOE PAC

Tetrafluoroboric acid solubility

Property Value Conditions Source
Solubility Very soluble in water, ethanol HSDB

Tetrafluoroboric acid vapor pressure

Property Value Conditions Source
Vapor pressure 5 mmHg Haz-Map

Values compiled from PubChem Laboratory Chemical Safety Summary. Temperatures converted to Fahrenheit for reference.

09 · Handling and storage

Tetrafluoroboric acid storage and handling

Tetrafluoroboric acid safe storage

Separated from strong bases, metals and food and feedstuffs. Well closed. Ventilation along the floor. Store only in original container. Do NOT store or transport in containers made from metal or glass. Store in an area without drain or sewer access.

Source: ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)

Tetrafluoroboric acid storage conditions

Separated from strong bases, food and feedstuffs. Well closed. Ventilation along the floor. /table/

Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

Tetrafluoroboric acid incompatible materials

Interaction of ... /hexafluorisopropylideneaminolithium/ with a range of chloro- and fluoro-derivatives of boron ... during warming to 25 °C tended to be violently exothermic in absence of solvent.

Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

Planning storage for a mix of chemicals? Check Tetrafluoroboric acid in the storage compatibility matrix →

10 · Transport

Tetrafluoroboric acid 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.

Tetrafluoroboric acid under UN 1775 — shipping name, class and packing group

Europe · ADR 2025, Table A

Proper shipping name (3.1.2) Class Classification code PG Labels (column 5)
FLUOROBORIC ACID 8 C1 II
  • ADR label model 8 — Corrosive substance
8

Source: ADR 2025, Table A of Chapter 3.2 · ECE/TRANS/352 Vol. I (UNECE). Class 8 is “Corrosive substances” (ADR 2.1.1.1).

Proper shipping name (column 2) Class or division PG Labels (column 6)
Fluoroboric acid 8 II
  • US DOT CORROSIVE label (§172.442)
8

Source: 49 CFR 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table · eCFR, revision 2026-08-03. Class 8 is “Corrosive material” (49 CFR 173.2).

Full UN 1775 entry — special provisions, packing instructions, quantity limits and the orange plate →

11 · Questions

Tetrafluoroboric acid — frequently asked questions

What is the CAS number of Tetrafluoroboric acid?

The CAS number of Tetrafluoroboric acid is 16872-11-0. Its EC number is 240-898-3.

What is the chemical formula of Tetrafluoroboric acid?

The molecular formula of Tetrafluoroboric acid is BF4H and its molecular weight is 87.82 g/mol.

What does a Tetrafluoroboric acid label have to show?

Under CLP Annex VI the label for Tetrafluoroboric acid carries the pictogram Corrosion and the signal word is Danger.

Is Tetrafluoroboric acid flammable?

CLP Annex VI assigns Tetrafluoroboric 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 Tetrafluoroboric acid a carcinogen?

CLP Annex VI records no harmonised carcinogenicity classification for Tetrafluoroboric acid. 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 boiling point of Tetrafluoroboric acid?

The boiling point reported for Tetrafluoroboric acid is 130 °C (266 °F), decomposes (HSDB).

How should Tetrafluoroboric acid be stored?

Separated from strong bases, food and feedstuffs. Well closed. Ventilation along the floor. /table/ (Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB))

Nearby

Substances next to Tetrafluoroboric acid

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