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Substance fact sheet

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Chlorine dioxide fact sheet
Health effects
Environmental effects
Common uses
Sources of emissions
Comparison to other substances
Physical and chemical properties
Sources of information used in preparing this fact sheet
The National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) provides information on the types and amounts of pollutants being emitted in the Australian community.

This page provides facts about chlorine dioxide. It describes how you might be exposed to this substance, how exposure might effect you and the environment, common uses, comparative data about chlorine dioxide and its physical and chemical properties.

For more information about some of the terms used in this page, see the NPI glossary.

The National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) holds data for all sources of chlorine dioxide emissions in Australia .

Australia's chlorine dioxide emission report
Health effects
What effect might chlorine dioxide have on my health?
How might chlorine dioxide enter my body?
How might I be exposed to chlorine dioxide?
What are the chlorine dioxide health guidelines?
What effect might chlorine dioxide have on my health?
Acute health effects : The following acute (short-term) health effects may occur immediately or shortly after exposure to chlorine dioxide: irritate the nose and throat, causing coughing and chest pain; eye irritation with watery eyes and seeing halos around lights; breathing chlorine dioxide can irritate the lungs causing coughing and/or shortness of breath. Higher exposures can cause a build-up of fluid in the lungs (pulmonary oedema), a medical emergency but which might not occur for 24 hours, with severe shortness of breath and possibly death.

Chronic health effects : The following chronic (long-term) health effects can occur at some time after exposure to chlorine dioxide and can last for months or years: irritate the lungs; repeated exposure may cause bronchitis to develop with cough, phlegm, and/or shortness of breath. Permanent lung damage may occur, especially with repeated exposure to the vapours. There is limited evidence that chlorine dioxide may damage the developing foetus.

How might chlorine dioxide enter my body?
The substance can be absorbed into the body by inhalation, ingestion of food that has been treated with chlorine dioxide, or skin contact.

How might I be exposed to chlorine dioxide?
People living near industries that produce or use chlorine dioxide. From using disinfectants or bleaches that contain chlorine dioxide. From foods and drinking water that have been treated with chlorine dioxide.

See Sources for more information.

What are the chlorine dioxide health guidelines?
Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (NHMRC and ARMCANZ, 1996):
Maximum of 1 mg/L (i.e. 0.001 g/L)

Worksafe Australia
Maximum time weighted exposure (TWA) level: 0.1 ppm 0.28 mg/m³
Maximum short term exposure level (STEL): 0.3 ppm 0.83 mg/m³

Additional information on current health and environmental guidelines
The Australian NOHSC National Exposure Standards Database link is probably the most useful source of information.

Note that the emissions data in the NPI database is not directly comparable with these guidelines.

Environmental effects
What effect might chlorine dioxide have on the environment?
How might chlorine dioxide enter the environment?
Where in the environment does chlorine dioxide end up?
What are the chlorine dioxide environmental guidelines?
What effect might chlorine dioxide have on the environment?
Chlorine dioxide is well established to be harmful to all forms of life. Ranked in the USA as one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%) to ecosystems.

How might chlorine dioxide enter the environment?
Most releases will be as the gas to the atmosphere or in wastewater streams from plants that make or use chlorine dioxide. Because of its high reactivity chlorine dioxide will not persist long in the air, water, or soil environments - up to minutes in air and up to hours in the others.

Where in the environment does chlorine dioxide end up?
In the atmosphere it will photolyze rapidly, with a tropospheric half-life of a few seconds. Because of its high reactivity, chlorine dioxide will breakdown rapidly in natural waters (that is, waters that contain moderate amounts of organic matter). Nevertheless, this substance is considered hazardous to the environment with special attention required for water organisms.

The breakdown products are chloride ion and oxidised products of organic matter.

What are the chlorine dioxide environmental guidelines?
No national guidelines.

Additional information on current health and environmental guidelines
Common uses
The major use of chlorine dioxide is as a bleach in a number of industries: in cleaning and de-tanning of leather, and as a bleaching agent for wood pulp, fats and oils, cellulose, flour, textiles, and beeswax.

Chlorine dioxide is registered as a bactericide, fungicide and algaecide. It is used to disinfect human drinking water systems, commercial water cooling tower systems, and metal cutting fluids. It may also be used to disinfect dairy farm animals and milking equipment, in eating establishments and food processing/handling areas and around the house. It is used extensively in Europe for disinfecting drinking water, and its use there is increasing as well as in North America and Australia, as an alternative to chlorine due to lesser problems with disinfection by-products.

Approved food additive in Australia (No. 926).

Sources of emissions
Industry sources
Diffuse sources, and industry sources included in diffuse emissions data
Natural sources
Transport sources
Consumer products that may contain chlorine dioxide
Industry sources
Paper and allied products industries; textile mills; chemical industries: food processing industries; drinking water treatment plants; and commercial water-cooling tower systems.

Diffuse sources, and industry sources included in diffuse emissions data
Residues from food and drinking water that have been treated with chlorine dioxide.

Natural sources
No specific information. Because of the nature of its high chemical reactivity, it is unlikely to occur naturally.

Transport sources
None known.

Consumer products that may contain chlorine dioxide
Possibly in some disinfectants and bleaches. Foods and drinking water that have been treated with chlorine dioxide.

Comparison to other substances
NPI rank
NPI rank
Approximately 400 substances were considered for inclusion on the NPI reporting list. A ranking and total hazard score was given based on health and environmental hazards and human and environmental exposure to the substance.

Chlorine dioxide was ranked as 41out of 400. The total hazard score taking into account both human health and environmental criteria is 3.3.

On a health hazard rating of 0 - 3 chlorine dioxide registers 1.8. A score of 3 represents a very high hazard to health, 2 represents a medium hazard and 1 is harmful to health.

On an environmental rating of 0 - 3 chlorine dioxide registers 1.5. A score of 3 represents a very high hazard to the environment and 0 a negligible hazard.

Factors taken into account to obtain this ranking and these scores include the extent of the material's toxic or poisonous nature and/or its lack of toxicity, and the measure of its ability to remain active in the environment and whether it accumulates in living organisms. It does not take into account exposure to the substance. Environmental exposure is reflected in the NPI rank for this substance (see comparative data below). A substance that scores highly as an environmental hazard is oxides of nitrogen at 3.0 and one of the lower scores is carbon monoxide at 0.8. A substance that scores highly as a health hazard is arsenic at 2.3 and one of the lowest scores is ammonia at 1.0.

More information about ranking NPI substances

Physical and chemical properties
Substance name Chlorine dioxide
CASR number 10049-04-4

Molecular formula ClO2
Synonyms Synonyms chlorine peroxide; chloroperoxyl; doxcide 50; chlorine oxide; chlorine(IV) oxide

Physical properties:
Chlorine dioxide is a strongly oxidising, yellow to reddish-yellow gas or liquid with a pungent, sharp odour. The odour is similar to that of chlorine and nitric acid. Soluble in water, alkaline, and sulfuric acid solutions. It is normally supplied as a less than 10% solution in cold water.
Melting Point (°C): -59
Boiling Point (°C): 11
Specific Gravity: 3.09
Vapour Density: 2.3
1 ppm = 2.8 mg/m³
Formula mass 67.452

Chemical properties:
Chlorine dioxide gas is flammable, and is violently explosive in air at concentrations over 10%. It can be ignited by almost any form of energy, including sunlight, heat, or sparks. Chlorine dioxide is strongly oxidising, and reacts violently with organic chemicals and can be detonated by sunlight, heat, or contact with mercury or carbon monoxide.

Sources of information used in preparing this fact sheet
Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council (ANZECC) (1992), Australian Water Quality Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Waters.
CalEPA Air Resources Board Toxic Air Contaminant Summary (accessed, June, 1999)
ChemFinder WebServer Project (1995) (accessed, June, 1999)
Environmental Defense Fund - Summary, Uses, Consumer Products, Rank (industrial, by quantity) (accessed, June, 1999)
IPCS International Chemical Safety Card (accessed, June, 1999)
Meagher, D (1991), The Macmillan Dictionary of The Australian Environment, Macmillan Education Australia Pty Ltd.
National Environment Protection Council (1998), National Environment Protection Measure for the National Pollutant Inventory. (accessed, March, 1999)
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand (ARMCANZ) (1996), Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.
New Jersey Health and Safety (accessed, June, 1999)
Richardson , M (1992), Dictionary of Substances and their Effects, Royal Society of Chemistry, Clays Ltd, England .
Sax, N.I. Dangerous Properties of Industrial Materials. 6th Ed. Van Nostrand Reinhold. New York . 1984. pp. 1505-1506.
Sittig, M (1991), Handbook of Toxic and Hazardous Chemicals and Carcinogens, 3rd edition, Noyes Publications, USA .
Technical Advisory Panel (1999), Final Report to the National Environment Protection Council.
US Department of Health and Human Services (1990), NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards, Publication No. 90-117.
USEPA Integrated Risk Information System Report (accessed, June, 1999)
USEPA Toxic Release Inventory Fact Sheet (accessed, June, 1999)
Worksafe Australia (accessed, June, 1999)
There is more information that may be useful in understanding some of the issues surrounding the NPI.

Background information
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