Tert-Butyl Catechol
Tert-Butyl Catechol (TBC) is commonly used in the industry to stabilize monomers, preventing them from spontaneous self polymerization. At room temperature, TBC is a solid crystalline powder that has a melting point around 50C and a boiling point around 280-290C.
From the Industrial Hygiene perspective, TBC is a semi volatile compound, where both TBC dust and vapour can be detected in air. Melted TBC may build up an elevated concentration of hot TBC vapour. When the hot air cools down, the TBC may form fumes (respirable dust) in equilibrium with TBC vapour.
An accurate review of its toxicological properties was published by the US Department of Health and Human Services . TBC is a known skin sensitizer and therefore should be closely monitored.
Catechol
To the best of our knowledge (2016), there is no official exposure limit of TBC. It is likely that its exposure limit should be similar to the one of Catechol, which is chemically and structurally similar to Tert-Butyl Catechol. ACGIH WEEL (2011) recommends 2 mg/m³ as a short-time exposure limit for TBC.
OSHA Versatile Sampler (OVS)
The TBC may be collected from the air using a procedure similar to the OSHA PV 2014 procedure for Catechol sampling. Samples are collected on OVS7 cartridges at flow rate of 1 L/min. Skin Swabs or Surface swab samples can also be collected using alcohol pads.
Please email LCS Laboratory to order the TBC test or to discuss your project.
