A review of the environmental fate and aquatic effects of a series of C4 and C8 oxo-process chemicals.

C A Staples

Index: Chemosphere 45(3) , 339-46, (2001)

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Abstract

Environmental fate and aquatic effects data were examined for a series of C4 (butyl acetate, 1-butanol, isobutyl alcohol) and C8 (2-ethylhexanol and 2-ethylhexanoic acid) oxo-process chemicals. Manufacturing of these chemicals requires enclosed equipment, so environmental releases are generally limited to volatilization during their use, handling or transport. C4 compounds are more soluble and volatile, and would bind to soil and sediment to a lesser extent than C8 compounds. All five compounds were readily biodegradable based on OECD and APHA tests conducted up to 28 days. Atmospheric photo-oxidation half-lives range from 0.43 to 3.8 days. Toxicity data show that all five compounds pose generally low concern to fish, invertebrates, algae, and microorganisms. Overall, the data show that inadvertent releases of these compounds into the environment would be rapidly biodegraded in soil and water, volatilize to the atmosphere subject to photo-oxidation, while any residues remaining in water would pose a negligible threat to aquatic life.