Zinc cyanide

Synonyms

Cyanure de zinc [French]; Zinc dicyanide; [ChemIDplus] UN1713

Category

Cyanides

Description

Colorless or white solid with an odor of bitter almonds; Insoluble in water; [Merck Index] Insoluble in water; Releases hydrogen cyanide upon contact with mineral acids; [Sullivan, p. 707]

Sources/Uses

Used in chemical analysis, electroplating, gold extraction, and removing ammonia from producer gas; [HSDB] Used to make phthalocyanine dyes; [Ullmann]

Comments

A skin irritant; May cause burns to eyes; [CAMEO] Releases hydrogen cyanide when reacted with carbon dioxide in the respiratory tract, which can cause acute cyanide poisoning; [CHEMINFO] Will not decompose when stored in the absence of air, moisture, and carbon dioxide; [Ullmann] An irritant; [MSDSonline] See "CYANIDES."

Biomedical References

5 mg/m3, as CN

2 mg/m3, inhalable fraction, as CN

25 mg/m3, as CN

LCLo (rat) = 61 mg/m3/4h

will not burn

Other Poison

Chemical Asphyxiant

Processes

Industrial Processes with risk of exposure:

• Electroplating