benzene (CAS 71-43-2) — Safety Data Sheet

benzene — CAS 71-43-2, Annex VI index 601-020-00-8. Below: what the regulatory file for this substance must contain and where such files usually fail.

benzene (CAS 71-43-2) at a glance

• Substance – benzene
• CAS number – 71-43-2
• EC number – 200-753-7
• CLP Annex VI index number – 601-020-00-8
• Hazard statements – H225 (highly flammable liquid and vapour); H350 (may cause cancer); H340 (may cause genetic defects); H304 (may be fatal if swallowed and enters airways); H372 (causes damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure); H315 (causes skin irritation)
• Hazard classes – Flam. Liq. 2, Carc. 1A, Muta. 1B, Asp. Tox. 1, STOT RE 1, Skin Irrit. 2
• Label pictograms – GHS02, GHS07, GHS08
• Signal word – Danger
• Entry current as of – ATP10
• CMR classification – yes, classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction
• Documentation issued – safety data sheet in REACH Annex II structure; working draft or signed card
• What is supplied – a document. MolGod.org does not sell, supply or ship chemical substances.

Is benzene classified as a CMR substance?

CAS 71-43-2 is classified as a CMR substance (H350, H340). That status changes the obligations attached to every shipment: workplace exposure documentation, restrictions on supply to the general public, and substitution pressure from downstream users who must justify continued use. A safety data sheet for a CMR substance is read more closely than any other, because the classification itself invites scrutiny.

Published sources behind the data

The toxicological and physicochemical record for benzene rests on published literature, not on a supplier summary. One of the canonical references is Faraday, M. (1825), “On new compounds of carbon and hydrogen, and on certain other products obtained during the decomposition of oi”, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, DOI 10.1098/rstl.1825.0022. Where a value in the sheet comes from a specific paper, the sheet says which paper — a reviewer can then check one number without re-reading the whole document.

How do I check if my SDS for benzene is still valid?

If a document concerning benzene is already in circulation, the initial consideration should be whether it is incorrect rather than whether to replace it, and if incorrect, in which specific sections. Errors tend to recur across a range of documents; therefore, examining three documents often provides insights that would otherwise require reviewing three hundred.

Is benzene a controlled substance?

Storage requirement on record: Annex XVII entry 5: benzene ≤0.1% in toys/preparations supplied to public; carcinogen Cat. 1A. None of this appears in the CLP classification, so a sheet built from Annex VI alone will be silent on it.

What is the UN number for benzene?

For carriage, benzene is assigned UN 1114, transport class 3, packing group II. These entries belong in section 14 of the safety data sheet and must match the shipping papers exactly. A consignment where the sheet and the transport document disagree on the UN number is stopped before anyone reads the remaining fifteen sections.

Target organ toxicity in the sheet

Specific target organ toxicity (H372) obliges the sheet to state the route of exposure and, where established, the organ affected. This is one of the few places where a generic phrase is treated as a defect rather than as caution: an unspecified organ leaves the downstream user unable to build an exposure scenario.

What is the EC number for benzene?

Alongside CAS 71-43-2, this substance carries EC number 200-753-7 and Annex VI index 601-020-00-8. European documentation is built around the EC number as often as around the CAS: registration dossiers, the candidate list and customs systems key on it. A safety data sheet quoting only one of the two forces every downstream reader to look up the other.

Identifiers that must agree

Three identifiers accompany this substance, and all must align: the CAS number 71-43-2, the Annex VI index number 601-020-00-8, and the name as listed in the register. Incongruent identifiers represent the subtlest flaw in a documentation set, as each individual document appears correct until a cross-check reveals they describe distinct entities.

Accidental release and containment

Emergency procedures for benzene are designed for immediate action during an incident, with section 6 focusing on efficiency: outlining what should be evacuated, what materials are appropriate for containment, and which substances must not be used in the process.

Is benzene on the SVHC candidate list?

Yes — benzene appears on the candidate list of substances of very high concern (added 2008-10-28, reason: CMR). That triggers duties that classification alone does not: notification to ECHA above the tonnage threshold, and an obligation to inform recipients where the substance is present in an article above 0.1 % by weight. Outside the Union the same substance appears on AICS (AU), DSL_TOXIC (CA), TSCA (US). Exporters are read against the list of the destination, not of the origin.

What must the label for benzene contain?

The supply label for benzene is generated from the same classification that drives the safety data sheet: pictograms selected by precedence, one signal word derived from the highest hazard class present, and the hazard statements H225, H350, H340… reproduced in full. Where the container is too small to carry the complete set at a legible size, there are lawful ways to handle it and unlawful ones that look identical to a non-specialist.

How is benzene classified for road, sea and air transport?

Carriers and forwarders handling benzene compare section 14 against the shipping papers before loading. Any disagreement stops the consignment at the point where correcting it is most expensive.

What happens if a consignment of benzene is refused?

Refusals related to benzene typically arise from three main causes: outdated classification due to amendments, inconsistencies between transport data and shipping documents, and language barriers where the receiving authority does not accept the provided documentation. These issues are not apparent to a reader who perceives the document as professionally presented.

Documentation demand on the EU market

CAS 71-43-2 has a recorded presence on the European trading market, which means documentation for it is requested routinely rather than exceptionally. Substances that move in commerce attract repeat scrutiny: the same sheet is read by successive customers, carriers and authorities, and a defect that survives the first reading rarely survives the tenth.

Protective equipment and exposure controls

Personal protective equipment for CAS 71-43-2 is prescribed in section 8, alongside engineering controls that come first in the hierarchy. A sheet naming protective equipment without naming ventilation requirements has skipped the more important half.

Which GHS pictograms apply to benzene?

The label for benzene carries GHS02 (flame), GHS07 (exclamation mark), GHS08 (health hazard), with the signal word Danger. These are not chosen by the supplier: CLP Annex VI states them for CAS 71-43-2, and the precedence rules in Annex I decide which pictogram is dropped when two would say the same thing. A label showing a different set from the register is wrong even if every hazard statement on it is correct.

Is benzene restricted under REACH Annex XVII?

benzene is covered by entry 5 of Annex XVII to REACH, which restricts how it may be placed on the market or used. A restriction is not the same as a classification: it limits the permitted uses regardless of how the substance is labelled, and it belongs in section 15 of the sheet. Importers who read only the classification and stop there routinely miss this.

What is the CLP classification of benzene?

The harmonised classification for CAS 71-43-2 carries 7 hazard statements: H225, H350, H340, H304, H372, H315, H319. In plain terms this means highly flammable liquid and vapour; may cause cancer; may cause genetic defects; may be fatal if swallowed and enters airways. A harmonised entry is binding across the Union — an importer may not soften it, and a self-classification that diverges from it will not survive an enforcement check.

Questions about documentation for benzene

In which language must the sheet be supplied?

In an official language of each Member State where benzene is placed on the market, unless that State has stated otherwise.

Can I check whether my existing sheet is still valid?

Yes. A section-by-section reading against Annex II and the current harmonised entry establishes that in one pass, and a sheet that passes is reported as passing.

Do I need a safety data sheet to import benzene into the EU?

Yes. A sheet compiled to Annex II of REACH must exist before the first consignment moves, and it must be held by the entity placing the substance on the Union market.

What is the CAS number of benzene?

CAS 71-43-2. In CLP Annex VI the same substance carries index number 601-020-00-8, and both identifiers should appear in the documentation.

MolGod.org issues documentation and does not sell, supply or ship chemical substances. CAS 71-43-2 identifies the subject of this document.