| Compound Name |
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) |
| Stockholm Annex code | I, III, IV |
| Key |
Annex I to the regulation are subject to prohibition (with specific exemptions) on manufacturing, placing on the market and use; Annex II to the regulation are subject to restriction on manufacturing, placing on the market and use; Annex III to the regulation are subject to release reduction provisions; and Annex IV to the regulation are subject to waste management provisions. Note that for some substances listed in Annex I, specific exemptions on the prohibition of their use, manufacturing and placing on the market may apply. |
| Classification |
Intentional |
| Category |
Listed under Annex A with specific exemptions and under Annex C |
| Year of Listing Decision |
2001 |
| Persistence |
10 to 15 years |
| Specific exemptions associated with its use |
Production: None |
| Acceptable purposes associated with its use |
PCBs were once used as a dielectric and coolant fluids in electrical apparatus, pesticide extenders, carbonless duplicating paper, adhesives and surface coatings They were also used in manufacture of capacitors and transformers |
| Conventions on POPs |
Stockholm Convention Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution Rotterdam Convention Basel Convention |
| Name |
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) |
| Synonyms |
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) 3,3',4,4',5,5'-Hexachlorobiphenyl PCB 169 PCBs 1,1'-Biphenyl, chloro derivs. Biphenyl, polychloro- Chlorextol Chlorinated diphenyl 3,4,5,3',4',5'-Hexa coplanar polychlorinated biphenyl Biphenyl, 3,3',4,4',5,5'-hexachloro- 1,2,3-trichloro-5-(3,4,5-trichlorophenyl)benzene 3,4,5,3',4',5'-Hexachloro-biphenyl Kanechlor |
| Structure | Cl)Cl)C2=CC(=C(C(=C2)Cl)Cl)Cl.png)
Molecular Formula:
C12H4Cl6
|
| CAS Number | 1336-36-3 |
| European Community (EC) Number | 215-648-1 |
| European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) | 215-648-1 |
| PubChem ID | 36231 |
| DSSTOX Substance ID | DTXSID5024267 |
| KEGG | C14201 |
| ChemSpider |
33316 |
| Similarity threshold | Name of Related Compound | DSSTox Substance ID | CAS Number | Molecular weight | Molecular formula |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | Polychlorinated biphenyls | DTXSID5024267 | 1336-36-3 | N/A g/mol | N/A |
| N/A | Clophen A 40 | DTXSID50873504 | 52306-32-8 | N/A g/mol | N/A |
| N/A | 2,4'-Dichlorobiphenyl | DTXSID0022511 | 34883-43-7 | 223.1 g/mol | C12H8Cl2 |
| N/A | 2,2',4,4'-Tetrachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID0022513 | 2437-79-8 | 291.98 g/mol | C12H6Cl4 |
| N/A | 3,3',4,4'-Tetrachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID5022514 | 32598-13-3 | 291.98 g/mol | C12H6Cl4 |
| N/A | 4,4'-Dichlorobiphenyl | DTXSID0022515 | 2050-68-2 | 223.1 g/mol | C12H8Cl2 |
| N/A | 2,2',3,3',5,5'-Hexachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID4030045 | 35694-04-3 | 360.86 g/mol | C12H4Cl6 |
| N/A | 2,3',4,4',5-Pentachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID4032116 | 31508-00-6 | 326.42 g/mol | C12H5Cl5 |
| N/A | 3,3',4,4',5-Pentachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID3032179 | 57465-28-8 | 326.42 g/mol | C12H5Cl5 |
| N/A | 2,2',4,4',5,5'-Hexachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID2032180 | 35065-27-1 | 360.86 g/mol | C12H4Cl6 |
| N/A | 2,2',3,4,4',5,5'-Heptachlorobiphenyl | DTXSID6038299 | 35065-29-3 | 395.31 g/mol | C12H3Cl7 |
| Description | Reference | Article Link |
|---|---|---|
| Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) comprise a light yellow or deep yellow oily liquid with properties of insulating ability, thermal stability, resistance to acids, oxidation, hydrolysis, and flame resistance. Due to these unique physical and chemical properties, PCBs have been widely used in many products, especially in transformers and power capacitors. Until 1971, 61% of PCBs were used in closed electrical systems, 13% were used in nominally closed systems, and 26% were used in open-end applications. After 1971, almost 100% of all PCBs produced were used in closed electrical systems. The chemical formula of PCBs is C12H(0-9)Cl(1-10). Theoretically, there are 209 kinds of different congeners based on the different position of chlorine atoms in the benzene ring. Actually, the number of PCBs congeners is just about 130. Generally, there are 41 main monitoring congeners in IUPAC. PCBs have several trade names in different countries. For example, they are called Aroclor, Pyranol, or Pyroclor in the United States, Phenoclor and Pyralene in France, Clophen and Elaol in Germany, Kanechlor and Santotherm in Japan, Fenchlor and Apirolio in Italy, and Sovol in the Soviet Union. | Dai et al., 2016. A review of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pollution in indoor air environment. | Link |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are members of the halogenated aromatic group of environmental pollutants that have been identified worldwide in diverse environmental matrices. PCBs were produced by the chlorination of biphenyl and the resulting products were marketed according to their percentage of chlorine content. For example, Aroclors 122 1, 1232, 1242, 1248, 1254, and 1260 are commercial PCBs that were formerly produced by the Monsanto Chemical Company and contain 21, 32,42,48,54, and 60% chlorine (by weight). The last two digits in the numerical designation for the different Aroclors denotes the percentage of chlorine content. Aroclor 1016 is a redistilled version of Aroclor 1242, with a chlorine composition of 41%. Similar commercial PCB mixtures have been produced by other manufacturers and these include the Clophens (Bayer, Germany), Phenoclors and Pyralenes (Prodelec, France), Fenclors (Caffaro, Italy) and Kanechlors (Kanegafuchi, Japan). Commercial PCBs also were manufactured in several other countries, including the former U.S.S.R. and Czechoslovakia. Commercial PCBs exhibit a broad range of physicochemical properties that are dependent, in part, on their degree of chlorination, and these properties contributed to the diverse applications of PCBs in numerous products. For example, PCBs have been used as organic diluents, plasticizers, pesticide extenders, adhesives, dust-reducing agents, cutting oils, flame retardants, heat transfer fluids, dielectric fluids for transformers and capacitors, hydraulic lubricants, sealants, and in carbonless copy paper. Some of the uses of PCBs have resulted in their direct introduction into the environment; however, a significant portion of the environmental burden of these compounds has resulted from careless disposal practices, accidents, leakage from various industrial facilities, and from chemical waste disposal sites. The total amount of PCBs produced worldwide and the proportion that is present in the environment are unknown; however, it has been estimated that approximately 1.5 million metric tons have been produced worldwide. The chemical properties primarily responsible for many of the industrial applications of PCBs, that is, their inflammability, chemical stability, and miscibility with organic compounds (i.e., lipophilicity), also are the same properties that have contributed to their environmental problems. Once introduced into the environment, the stable PCBs degrade relatively slowly and undergo cycling and transport within the various components of the global ecosystem. Moreover, due to their lipophilicity , these compounds preferentially bioaccumulate and biomagnify in higher trophic levels of the food chain. | Safe. 1994. Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) : Environmental Impact, Biochemical and Toxic Responses, and Implications for Risk Assessment | Link |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls, PCBs, are chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons which were discovered in 1881. Effects of PCBs on the environment were noted more than 75 years later when accumulations of PCBs were found in aquatic life of the Baltic Sea. The commercial production of PCBs began in 1929, and during the following decade, cases of poisoning were reported among workers involved in the manufacturing of PCBs [ 21. Ensuing safety precautions prevented further PCB poisoning until 1953 when cases were reported in Japanese factories. | George et al., 1988. Polychlorinated biphenyls a toxicological review. | Link |
| A polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) is an organic chlorine compound with the formula C12H10?xClx. Polychlorinated biphenyls were once widely deployed as dielectric and coolant fluids in electrical apparatus, carbonless copy paper and in heat transfer fluids. Because of their longevity, PCBs are still widely in use, even though their manufacture has declined drastically since the 1960s, when a host of problems were identified. With the discovery of PCBs' environmental toxicity, and classification as persistent organic pollutants, their production was banned by United States federal law in 1978, and by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in 2001. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), rendered PCBs as definite carcinogens in humans. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), PCBs cause cancer in animals and are probable human carcinogens. Many rivers and buildings, including schools, parks, and other sites, are contaminated with PCBs and there has been contamination of food supplies with the substances. Some PCBs share a structural similarity and toxic mode of action with dioxins. Other toxic effects such as endocrine disruption (notably blocking of thyroid system functioning) and neurotoxicity are known | Wikipedia: Polychlorinated biphenyl | Link |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a series of chlorine substitute compounds which contain 209 members. Due to their superior physicochemical properties, they were wildly applied as additives in rubber, resins, carbonless copy paper, inks, hydraulic fluids, heat-transfer fluids, and lubricants. On account of their severe toxic and persistent properties, industrial manufacturing of PCBs was banned worldwide. However, there were approximately 1.5 million tons of legacy PCBs produced during 1920?1980. In addition, PCBs are still inadvertently produced and can be found in a range of consumer products. Currently, PCBs still recirculate among air, soil, and sediment and slowly bioaccumulate in humans through the food chain. Epidemiological studies uncovered that PCBs exposure is tightly correlated to the development of cardiovascular diseases, liver diseases, hormone disorders, immunological effects, neurologic effects and genetic toxicity, etc. | Liu et al., 2020. A Critical Review of Polychlorinated Biphenyls Metabolism, Metabolites, and Their Correlation with Oxidative Stress | Link |