Calcium cyanide
Agent Name
Calcium cyanide
CAS Number
592-01-8
Formula
C2-Ca-N2
Major Category
Toxic Gases & Vapors
Synonyms
Calcid; Calcium cyanide (mixture); Calcium cyanide [ISO]; Calcyan; Calcyanide; Cyanide of calcium; Cyanogas; Cyanure de calcium [French]; Degesch Calcium Cyanide A-Dust; [ChemIDplus] Cyanogas A-dust; Cyanogas G-fumigant; [CHRIS] UN1575
Category
Cyanides
Description
Colorless or white solid; Technical grade is gray-black in color; [Hawley] White powder; Decomposes in water or moisture releasing hydrogen cyanide; [Sullivan, p. 707]
Sources/Uses
Used to make stainless-steel and other cyanides; Also used to leach ores for precious metals and to stabilize cement; No longer registered as a pesticide product (rodenticide, fumigant, insecticide, and miticide); [HSDB] Produced only in South Africa and used there to leach precious metals from ores; [Ullmann]
Comments
Releases hydrogen cyanide in moist air; [Hawley] A skin, eye, and respiratory tract irritant; May cause cyanide poisoning; [ICSC] See "CYANIDES."
Biomedical References
Exposure Assessment
Skin Designation (ACGIH)
Yes
Ceiling (ACGIH)
5 mg/m3, as CN
PEL (OSHA)
5 mg/m3, as CN
MAK
2 mg/m3, inhalable fraction, as CN
IDLH (NIOSH)
25 mg/m3, as CN
Vapor Pressure
0.035 mm Hg
NFPA
will not burn
Adverse Effects
Other Poison
Chemical Asphyxiant
Diseases, Processes, and Activities Linked to This Agent
Diseases
Occupational diseases associated with exposure to this agent:
Processes
Industrial Processes with risk of exposure: