United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water 4601 EPA 811-F-95-004u-T October 1995 National Primary Drinking Water Regulations Vinyl Chloride CHEMICAL/ PHYSICAL PROPERTIES CAS NUMBER: 75-01-4 COLOR/ FORM/ODOR: Colorless gas, sweet odor M.P.: -13.37° C B.P.: -153.2° C VAPOR PRESSURE: 2600 mm Hg at 25° C DENSITY/SPEC. GRAV.: 0.91 at 20° C OCTANOL/WATER PARTITION (Kow): Log Kow = 0.6 (calculated) SOLUBILITY: 2.7 g/L of water; Slightly soluble in water ODOR/TASTE THRESHOLDS: N/A BlOCONCENTRATION FACTOR.' Estimated BCF = 7; not expected to bioconcentrate in aquatic organisms. HENRY'S LAW COEFFICIENT: 0.0560 atrri-cu m/mole; SOIL SORPTION COEFFICIENT: Koc estimated at 56; highly mobile in TRADE NAMES/SYNONYMS: soil Chlorethene; Chlorethylene; monochloroethene; Monovinyl chloride (MVC); Trovidur DRINKING WATER STANDARDS MCLG: zero mg/L MCL: 0.002 mg/L HAL(child): 1 - to 10-day: 3 mg/L Longer-term: 0.01 mg/L HEALTH EFFECTS SUMMARY Acute: EPA has found vinyl chloride to potentially RELEASE PATTERNS cause neurological effects from acute exposures at lev- els above the MCL. Limited quantities of vinyl chloride were used in the United States as an aerosol propellant, a refrigerant, an extraction solvent and as an ingredient of drug and cosmetic products. Proportions consumed for various uses in 1989 were: polyvinyl chloride products, 91%; exports, 7%; other, including chlorinated solvents, 2%. Drinking water levels which are considered "safe" for short-term exposures: Fora 10-kg (22 Ib.) child consum- ing 1 liter of water per day: a one- to ten-day exposure of 3 mg/L; upto a 7-year exposure to 0.01 mg/L. Chronic: Vinyl chloride has the potential to cause neurological and liver effects from long-term exposure at levels above the MCL. Although vinyl chloride is produced in large quantities, almost all of it is used captively for the production of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and other polymers. Therefore, its major release to the environment will be as emissions and wastewater at these production and manufacturing facilities. Vinyl chloride is also a product of anaerobic degradation of chlorination solvents such as would be expected to occur in groundwater and landfills. Cancer: Vinyl chloride has the potential to cause cancer from a lifetime exposure at levels above the MCL. USAGE PATTERNS Production of vinyl chloride in 1993 was nearly 14 billion Ibs. Vinyl chloride is used in the manufacture of numerous products in building and construction, automotive indus- try, electrical wire insulation and cables, piping, industrial nd household equipment, medical supplies, and is depended upon heavily by the rubber, paper, and glass industries. Toxic RELEASE INVENTORY - RELEASES TO WATER AND LAND: Water TOTALS (in pounds) 21 ,693 Top Five States LA 12,600 DE 86 OH 3,360 PA 0 SC 0 Major Industries Plastics, resins 19,489 1987 TO 1993 Land 17,038 0 8,829 0 3,290 3,100 13,375 October 1995 Technical Version ------- Small quantities of vinyl chloride can be released to food by migration of vinyl chloride monomer present in polyvinyl chloride food wrappings arid containers. Major human exposure will be from inhalation of occupational atmospheres and from ingestion of contaminated food and drinking water which has come into contact with polyvinyl chloride packaging material or pipe which has not been treated adequately to remove residual mono- mer. From 1987 to 1992, according to EPA's Toxic Release Inventory, vinyl chloride releases to land totalled over 17,000 IDS., and releases to water totalled over 21,000 Ibs. These releases were primarily from plastics materi- als and resins industries. The largest releases occurred in Louisiana and Delaware. ENVIRONMENTAL FATE If vinyl chloride is released to soil, it will be subject to rapid volatilization with reported half-lives of 0.2 and 0.5 days for evaporation from soil at 1 and 10 cm incorpora- tion, respectively, based on a high vapor pressure of 2,600 mm Hg at 25 degrees C. Based on a reported water solubility of 2,700 mg/L, a Koc of 56 was estimated. According to estimated Koc values, vinyl chloride will be expected to be highly mobile in soil and it may leach to the groundwater. It may be subject to biodegradation under anaerobic conditions such as exists in flooded soil and groundwater. If released to water, vinyl chloride will rapidly evapo- rate. Using a reported Henry's Law constant of 0.0560 atm/cu m-mole, a half-life of 0.805 hr was calculated for evaporation from a model river 1 m deep with a current of 3 m/sec and with a wind velocity of 3 m/sec. In waters containing photosensitizers such as humic acid, photo- degradation will occur fairly rapidly. Limited existing data indicate that vinyl chloride is resistant to biodegradation in aerobic systems and therefore, it may not be subject to biodegradation in aerobic soils and natural waters. It will not be expected to hydrolyze in soils or natural waters under normal environmental conditions. If vinyl chloride is released to the atmosphere, it can be expected to exist mainly in the vapor-phase in the ambi- ent atmosphere and to degrade rapidly in air by gas- phase reaction with photochemically produced hydroxyl radicals with an estimated half-life of 1.5 days. Some data indicate that vinyl chloride is too readily volatilized to undergo bioaccumulation, except perhaps in the most extreme exposure conditions. Based on a reported water solubility of 2,700 mg/l, a BCF of 7 was estimated, indicating that vinyl chloride will not be ex- pected to significantly bioconcentrate in aquatic organ- isms. OTHER REGULATORY INFORMATION MONITORING: FOR GROUND/SURFACE WATER SOURCES: INITIAL FREQUENCY- 4 quarterly samples every 3 years REPEAT FREQUENCY- Annually after 1 year of no detection TRIGGERS - Return to Initial Freq. if detect at > 0.0005 mg/L ANALYSIS: REFERENCE SOURCE EPA 600/4-88-039 METHOD NUMBERS 502.2; 524.2 TREATMENT: BEST AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGIES Granular Activated Charcoal and Packed Tower Aeration FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: A EPA can provide further regulatory and other general information: • EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline - 800/426-4791 * Other sources of toxicological and environmental fate data include: • Toxic Substance Control Act Information Line - 202/554-1404 • Toxics Release Inventory, National Library of Medicine - 301/496-6531 • Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry - 404/639-6000 October 1995 Technical Version Page 2 ------- |