Product Name: Methanesulphonyl Chloride
Chemical Formula: CH3SO2Cl
CAS Number: 124-63-0
Synonyms: Mesyl chloride, Methylsulfonyl chloride
Recommended Use: Organic synthesis, sulfonation reactions
Manufacturer Information: Reach out to your supplier or distributor for emergency technical assistance, supply chain specifics, or batch certificates.
Emergency Telephone: Local poison control center and fire department lines offer the fastest response, especially outside business hours.
GHS Classification: Acute Toxicity (Oral, Dermal, Inhalation): Category 3, Skin Corrosion/Irritation: Category 1B
Signal Word: Danger
Hazard Statements: Toxic if swallowed; causes severe skin burns and eye damage; toxic if inhaled; causes respiratory irritation; hazardous particularly by direct contact or if inhaled.
Precautionary Statements: Avoid breathing mist, vapors, or spray; use only outdoors or in well-ventilated areas; wear protective gloves, clothing, eye and face protection; wash hands thoroughly after handling.
Immediate Effects: Burns to skin, severe eye damage, respiratory tract irritation, drowsiness or dizziness, symptoms appear rapidly.
Long-Term Effects: Possible lung inflammation or liver impairment from prolonged or repeated exposure, no established carcinogenicity.
Chemical Name: Methanesulphonyl chloride
Concentration: >99% pure
Impurities: Trace methylsulfonic acid or hydrogen chloride may occur depending on storage conditions and supplier quality
Molecular Weight: 114.55 g/mol
Relevant Additives: No additives typically included
Inhalation: Take person to fresh air immediately; keep at rest in a position comfortable for breathing; administer oxygen if symptoms persist; seek urgent medical attention for labored breathing or persistent coughing.
Skin Contact: Remove contaminated clothing; flush skin with running water for at least 15 minutes; do not apply neutralizing agents; get medical evaluation for severe, blistering, or persistent redness.
Eye Contact: Rinse eyes cautiously with water for several minutes, lifting eyelids regularly; use eyewash station if possible; call emergency medical services or visit a physician right away.
Ingestion: Do not induce vomiting; rinse mouth with water, give small amounts of water to drink if conscious; seek physician’s assistance without delay; never give fluids to an unconscious person.
Notes to Physician: Provide symptomatic and supportive care, manage airway protection; maintain ventilation; treat chemical burns as appropriate.
Suitable Extinguishing Media: Use carbon dioxide, dry chemical powder, or alcohol-resistant foam; water spray used only for cooling containers, not directly on the substance.
Specific Hazards from Combustion: Releases toxic hydrogen chloride, sulfur oxides, and possibly carbon monoxide when burning; vaporizes easily and can create corrosive and toxic clouds.
Special Protective Equipment: Responders require positive-pressure self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and full chemical protective clothing.
Advice for Firefighters: Approach fire upwind; contain runoff as it may corrode or harm drains and surfaces; avoid inhaling gases or contact with contaminated surfaces.
Hazardous Combustion Products: Hydrogen chloride, sulfur dioxide, oxides of sulfur, carbon oxides
Personal Precautions: Evacuate area, restrict access until cleanup complete; wear full chemical-resistant gear including gloves, goggles, face shield, and respirator; avoid breathing vapors.
Environmental Precautions: Prevent substance from entering drains, surface or groundwater, or soil as even small amounts corrode pipes or impact aquatic life.
Methods for Containment and Clean Up: Absorb spill with inert material (sand, earth, or vermiculite); carefully collect and place into container for disposal; ventilate area thoroughly; neutralize traces with dilute alkali after clean-up if needed.
Decontamination: Rinse area with copious amounts of water only after bulk cleaned; monitor possible corrosion to floors, drains, or metallic surfaces.
Safe Handling: Keep container tightly sealed; handle under chemical fume hood; avoid open flames and sources of ignition; transfer in small quantities only; do not breathe vapors or mist.
Storage Requirements: Store in a cool, dry location, away from incompatible substances like water, alcohols, amines, bases, and oxidizers; use corrosion-resistant containers; keep away from direct sunlight and heat; maintain secondary containment to contain leaks.
Specific End Uses: Restricted to experienced chemical handlers; avoid any use outside designated laboratory, production, or industrial environment.
Control Parameters: No specific OSHA or ACGIH exposure limits set; follow good industrial hygiene principles.
Engineering Controls: Require local exhaust ventilation or fume hood for open handling; maintain negative pressure to prevent vapor escape.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Chemical-resistant gloves (nitrile or butyl rubber), full body apron, chemical splash goggles, face shield, and properly fitted respirator if airborne concentrations may form.
Hygiene Measures: Remove and wash contaminated clothing before reuse; wash hands, arms, and face after handling.
Environmental Exposure Controls: Prevent release to environment; ensure safe disposal systems for air, water, and solid waste.
Physical State: Colorless to pale yellow liquid
Odor: Sharp, suffocating, similar to chlorinated chemicals
Melting Point: -32°C
Boiling Point: 162-164°C
Flash Point: 67°C (closed cup)
Autoignition Temperature: Not readily available
Explosion Limits: Not available
Vapor Pressure: 6 hPa at 20°C
Vapor Density: Heavier than air
Solubility in Water: Reacts violently with water
Density: 1.479 g/cm³ at 20°C
Partition Coefficient (n-octanol/water): Not determined
Viscosity: 2.09 mPa·s at 25°C
Evaporation Rate: Not measured directly, but possible with air movement due to volatility
Chemical Stability: Stable under recommended storage conditions; unstable when exposed to moisture or heat.
Possible Hazardous Reactions: Reacts with water to form hydrochloric acid and methylsulfonic acid; incompatible with acids, bases, amines, oxidizers.
Conditions to Avoid: Heat, sunlight, humidity, water, and incompatible materials.
Hazardous Decomposition Products: Hydrogen chloride, sulfur oxides, methylsulfonic acid
Polymerization: Not expected under normal handling or storage conditions
Acute Toxicity: LD50 (Oral, rat): Estimated 80 mg/kg; LD50 (Dermal, rabbit): Not established, but corrosive; LC50 (Inhalation, rat): Not precisely known
Routes of Exposure: Ingestion, inhalation, skin absorption, eye contact
Symptoms of Exposure: Severe burns to skin and eyes, respiratory tract irritation, cough, sore throat, dizziness, headaches, abdominal pain, nausea
Chronic Effects: Repeat exposure may aggravate preexisting respiratory or skin disorders; possible liver or kidney impairment in animal studies
Corrosivity: Strongly corrosive to eyes, skin, mucous membranes
Allergenic Potential: Not classed as allergenic
Carcinogenicity/Mutagenicity: Not listed as carcinogenic, mutagenicity not well-studied
Aquatic Toxicity: Highly toxic to aquatic organisms due to rapid acidification and corrosiveness
Persistence and Degradability: Hydrolyzes quickly in water to yield methylsulfonic acid and hydrochloric acid both of which acidify the environment rapidly
Bioaccumulation: Unlikely due to fast breakdown in water
Mobility in Soil: Mobile, especially in moist soils; hydrolyzes; risk of contaminating groundwater if handled or discarded improperly
Other Ecological Effects: Contributes to acidification of water bodies or soil if released in quantity; disrupts microbial and plant life
Precautions: Never dispose with general waste, drains, or untreated in the open environment
Waste Disposal Methods: Treat as hazardous waste; consult professional chemical disposal companies for incineration or specialized neutralization
Contaminated Packaging: Triple rinse, neutralize, and dispose as hazardous waste; do not attempt to recycle or reuse drums or bottles without thorough decontamination
Precautions for Disposal: Never pour into watercourses, the sewer, or general landfill; keep detailed records of amounts and handling as required by law
UN Number: 3246
UN Proper Shipping Name: Methanesulphonyl Chloride
Transport Hazard Class: 8 (Corrosive substances)
Packing Group: II (substance presents medium danger)
Environmental Hazards: Marine pollutant according to transport regulation
Special Precautions: Segregate from acids, bases, and oxidizers while in transport; keep tightly closed; ensure all handlers know emergency procedures; proper marking and documentation required
Transit Requirements: Use corrosion-resistant containers, check for leaks or damage regularly
TSCA Status: Listed in the US Toxic Substances Control Act Inventory
EINECS Number (EU): 204-699-5
REACH Regulation: Subject to restriction for professional and industrial use only; safety data sheet required with all shipments in the EU
OSHA: Regarded as hazardous; strict workplace controls and employee training required
EPA: Regulated for environmental and disposal considerations
Other Regulations: Transport of Dangerous Goods (TDG): Corrosive, controlled under international AML, DOT, IMDG, and IATA regulations
Labeling: Hazard pictograms, signal words, hazard and precautionary statements required by GHS
Worker Training: Mandatory for all operators exposed to this compound; use workplace monitoring and control programs to keep exposure low
