Table of Contents

1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION.......................................................................................1
1.1 Identity............................................................................................................................1
1.2 Physicochemical properties............................................................................................1
1.3 Organoleptic properties..................................................................................................2
1.4 Major uses......................................................................................................................2
2 ABSTRACT...............................................................................................................2
3 INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................2
4 COMPOSITION AND LIFE CYCLE OF PVC..........................................................4
5 Health Effects............................................................................................................6
5.1 Acute effects....................................................................................................................6
5.2 Chronic Effects...............................................................................................................6
5.3 Cancer Risks...................................................................................................................7
5.4 Reproductive/ Developmental Effects:...........................................................................7
6 Bibliography...............................................................................................................9
 Health Effects of PVC

1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION
1.1 Identity

CAS No.: 75-01-4

Molecular Formula C2H3Cl

The IUPAC name of vinyl chloride is chloroethene; it is also known as monochloroethylene.

1.2 Physicochemical properties

Property Value
Physical State Colorless
Boiling Point 0.100C
Vapor density 2.2 relative to air at 20C
Water Solubility Slightly soluble (1.1 g/liter) at room temp.
Log octanol-water partition coefficient 1.5

Vinyl chloride is a colorless, combustible gas with a mildly pleasant odor when exposed to
the atmosphere. It has a high vapor pressure, a low water solubility, and a high Henry's law
constant. In practically all organic solvents, vinyl chloride dissolves. It is heavier than air and
can spread across the ground, causing exposure far from the initial source. It can also be used
to create explosive mixtures.

1.3 Organoleptic properties

At high concentrations, vinyl chloride emits a pleasant, sweetish odour. The smell threshold
value in air is very subjective, ranging from 26–52 mg/m3 in sensitive individuals to 10 000
mg/m3, and is far higher than the currently accepted occupational safety threshold values
(IPCS, 1999).

1.4 Major uses

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC, or vinyl) is a cost-effective, versatile plastic that is used in a wide
range of products in the building and construction, health care, electronics, automobile, and
other industries, including piping and siding, blood bags, syringes and tubing, electrical
wiring insulation, windscreen system components, and more.

2 ABSTRACT

PVC (polyvinyl Chloride) is a popular material because it has a lot of valuable technological
features, is relatively inexpensive to produce, and is simple to deal with. PVC production
capacity increased to 61 million metric tons (T) in 2016, up from 53 million T in 2013,
making it the world's fifth most manufactured plastic. We integrate existing understanding of
the benefits and concerns surrounding the usage of plastics in this paper, as well as future
objectives, difficulties, and opportunities. PVC and plastics are undeniably beneficial to
society and promise future technical and medical advancements. However, there are a variety
of concerns about use and disposal, including waste accumulation in waste disposal and
natural habitats, physical problems for wildlife caused by ingestion or engulfment in PVC
and other plastics, chemical leaching from PVC products, and the possibilities for plastics to
transfer chemicals to aquatic life and humans. (Richard C. Thompson, 2009)
Throughout its existence, PVC pollutes persons and the environment by contaminating them
during manufacture, use, and dumping. While all plastics carry major health and
environmental risks, few people realise that PVC is the most environmentally harmful of all
polymeric materials. Because safer alternatives exist for nearly all PVC applications, it is
possible to preserve human and environmental health by replacing and eventually phaseing
out this poisonous plastic.

3 INTRODUCTION

PVC comes in a variety of formulas and compositions, and it is often characterized as "the
world's most versatile plastic" by the industry. Its "versatility" is owed only to the numerous,
diverse ingredients utilised. These additives, which are often hazardous and employed in high
doses, give the desired qualities for a product's use, such as rigidity/flexibility or
opaqueness/transparency. As a result, achieving the intended functionality of PVC items
comes with a significant chemical risk.
Plastics offer numerous advantages, and modern civilization would be extremely different
without them. The most significant advantages of plastic are its medical applications and
public health applications. Plastics are inexpensive to create, use little energy, and are
lightweight and friendly. Many various forms of plastics work as new materials for usage in
engineered tissues, easily absorbed sutures, prosthesis, and other therapeutic applications
because they are soft, opaque, flexible, or biodegradable. (Comanita & Ghinea, 2015)

However, PVC and Plastics on the other hand, have a number of drawbacks, including
hazardous compounds that can leak out and harm humans and other species.
The packaging sector connected with plastics manufacturing and consumption is well
established in Europe, accounting for 39.4% of total plastics consumption (Fig. 1). What
happens after we consume plastic is a widely discussed topic. Only in Europe, it is estimated
that roughly 25 million tonnes of post-consumer plastics trash ended up in wastewater in
2012.  About 38% of this mass was disposed of in landfills, while 26% was recycled and 36%
was recovered using energy recovery techniques. (P. Corabieru, 2014).
Figure 1. European PVC demand in 2012

According to the findings of the study, long-term usage of plastic water bottles or containers
raises health risks. Many chemical chemicals are commonly found in water containers  many
of which pose a major health concern. Human exposure to harmful components like
Bisphenol A (BPA), pthalates, antiminitroxide, halogenated fire retardants, and
polyfluorinated compounds, for example, is potentially deadly. Many mass-produced
products, including as medical equipment, food packaging, fragrances, cosmetics, toys,
building materials, computers, and CDs, include BPA and phthalates, which can account for a
large portion of the plastic content. Phthalates, for example, can make up a significant
amount of PVC by weight, whereas BPA is a monomer utilised in the creation of
polycarbonate plastics as well as an additive used in the production of PVC. Because
phthalates are not chemically bonded to the plastic matrix, they can leach out of items, and
they have gotten a lot of attention because of their huge manufacturing quantities and
widespread use. (Ram Proshad , Tapos Kormoker , Md. Saiful Islam , Mohammad Asadul
Haque , Md. Mahfuzur Rahman , Md. Mahabubur Rahman Mithu, 2018).

4 COMPOSITION AND LIFE CYCLE OF PVC

The three key stages of the PVC lifespan are manufacturing, use, and disposal. The
development and discharge of hazardous compounds, as well as the use of energy and
resources, are all environmental risks associated with vinyl manufacture. PVC is made up of
five primary steps: the manufacturing of ethylene and chlorine gas, feedstock manufacturing,
polymerization, formation or compounding, and moulding. 1. Ethylene and chlorine gas
production— The main resources for vinyl manufacture are ethylene gas (purified from
natural gas or petroleum) and chlorine gas (synthesised from sea salt using high-energy
electrolysis). 2. Feedstock production— ethylene dichloride (EDC, also termed as 1,2-
dichloroethane) can be made by chlorination or oxychlorination from chlorine and ethylene.
Ethylene and chlorine are mixed in chlorination to form EDC.In a process known as
oxychlorination, hydrogen chloride produced as a by-product of this reaction is mixed with
more ethylene to make further EDC. By using pyrolysis, EDC is transformed into vinyl
chloride monomer (VCM; the chemical term for VCM is chloroethylene).3. Polymerization:
VCM molecules are joined together to produce polyvinyl chloride, which is commonly a
white powder. Pure PVC is blended with various chemicals such as stabilisers, plasticizers,
colourants, and other additives to produce an useable plastic with desired qualities. PVC is
not particularly helpful in its pure form: it is hard and brittle, and when exposed to ultraviolet
light, it gradually catalyses its own disintegration. PVC must be blended with additives to
make it flexible, moldable, and long-lasting before it can be manufactured into usable items.
4. PVC additives comprise a variety of harmful substances, but the phthalate plasticizers and
metal-based stabilizers—lead, cadmium, organotins, zinc, and other compounds—are the
most environmentally significant.5. Molding— the finished product, such as a bottle, floor
tile, or pipe, is moulded from the formed plastic. Usage;  The utilisation of vinyl compounds
is the second key stage in the PVC lifecycle. The product's useful life can be short (for
example, PVC packaging with a lifespan measured in days or weeks) or moderate (for
example, a lifetime measured in years) (PVC tiles or materials for roofing, which have an
average lifetime of 10 to 11 years). During this stage, environmental dangers include the
leakage of harmful compounds into the interior or outdoor environment from the vinyl
product, as well as unintentional combustion, especially if large amounts of PVC are
employed, such as vinyl roofing membranes or siding. (Mohammad Mahdi Shahsavar, Nasim
Ghadami, Mehran Akrami, Reza Aghlmand and Mohammad Gheibi, 4 August,2021)

Manufacture of Uses of PVC Disposal of PVC

PVC

Toxic by End of LIfe Incineration

products/ waste Leaching of Landfills
chemicals Recycling

Figure 2:Life Cycle Stages of PVC

Disposal; Finally, the vinyl product is disposed away after its usable life, usually in
incinerators or landfills. The formation and release of unintended combustion by-products
when vinyl is incinerated or processed in a secondary smelter for recycling metal products, as
well as the long-term persistence of vinyl products in land disposal facilities, the product
being leached of hazardous substances, and the formation and release of unplanned
combustion by-products when vinyl is incinerated or processed in a secondary smelter for
recycling metal products, are all environmental impacts at this stage. Only a small percentage
of vinyl gets recycled, which might result in the release of harmful compounds into the
environment or a wider range of consumer goods.
Releases of lead and other stabilizers Metal stabilizers are also released from PVC products.
Significant releases of lead have been documented from PVC window blinds,155 leading to a
warning by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Lead is also known to leach into
water carried in PVC pipes that contain lead stabilizers.156 But lead continues to be used in
building-related materials, as are other hazardous additives. Lead stabilizers are commonly
used in pipes, vinyl cables, and window profiles, although their use is greater in Europe than
in the United States. Lead accounts for nearly 70 percent of all vinyl stabilizers in Europe,
with consumption of more than 51,000 tons of lead in PVC annually, based on 2000
estimates by the European Union.
Lead is an infinitely persistent substance and is exquisitely toxic to the developing brain—
even in tiny amounts. In November 2000, the Danish government took action to ban the use
of virtually all lead compounds, including those in PVC cables, gutters, pipes, roofing, and
windows, by no later than 2003.159 PVC is also associated with other toxic metals.
According to the European Commission, 50 tons (110,000 pounds) of cadmium— also a
highly neurotoxic and infinitely persistent metal— are used in vinyl each year in Europe,
although quantities are declining. Consumption of organotin compounds in vinyl is estimated
at 15,000 tons, mostly in rigid films, roofing materials, and clear rigid construction
sheeting.160 Organotins used in vinyl can suppress the immune systems, cause birth defects,
damage the liver, bile duct, and pancreas, and may pose hazards to the aquatic organisms
when released into the environment.

5 Health Effects

PVC causes major health and environmental risks at every stage of its lifespan, according to
the organisation, which claims that "PVC is the one most environmentally destructive of all
plastics”.Two words sum up the reasons why PVC is so dangerous: chlorine and dioxin. PVC
manufacture is the largest and fastest-growing use of chlorine in the United States,
accounting for roughly 40% of all chlorine utilised. CFCs, which damaged the ozone layer,
dioxin poisoning  Times Beach, Agent Orange, PCBs, and DDT pesticides are all examples
of chlorine as a basic building block.

Hundreds of chlorine-based poisons, as well as DDT insecticides, are accumulating in the air.
Hundreds of chlorine-based poisons are accumulating in the atmosphere, water, and food
supply. PVC production produces dioxin and dioxin-like chemicals in addition to a lot of
chlorine. Dioxins are "a category of chemically related chemicals that are persistent main
sources of pollution (POPs)," according to the World Health Organization. When chlorine is
used to make chemicals, these compounds are formed. "Evidence implies that PVC is
responsible for a higher share of the nation's yearly dioxin load than any other industrial
product during its entire lifecycle," the WHO notes. Dioxin is one of the most dangerous
compounds ever created. (Ungureanu-Comanita Elena-Diana, Cristina Ghinea,
November,2020)

5.1 Acute effects

 Humans who were exposed to high quantities of vinyl chloride by inhalation had
symptoms such as dizziness, drowsiness, headaches, and giddiness. (Public Health
Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2017)
  In humans, vinyl chloride is said to be slightly irritating to the eyes and respiratory
tract. (Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2017)

 In humans and animals, acute exposure to extremely high doses of vinyl chloride has
resulted in loss of consciousness, lung and kidney inflammation, and blood clotting
inhibition. (National Toxicology Information Program, 2010)

 Mice exposed to vinyl chloride were shown to have a significant acute toxicity from
inhalation exposure in tests.

5.2 Chronic Effects

 Chronic Effects (Noncancer): Chronic exposure to vinyl chloride, whether inhalation

or oral, can cause liver damage in humans. (Public Health Service, U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services, 2017)

 Raynaud's phenomenon (fingers blanch and numbness and discomfort are experienced
when exposed to cold), changes in the bones at the end of the fingers, joint and
muscle pain, and scleroderma-like skin changes have all been reported in people who
have been exposed to high levels of vinyl chloride in the air at work (decreased
elasticity, thickening of the skin, and slight edema). (Assessment, 2016)

 Workers exposed to vinyl chloride have experienced CNS effects (dizziness,

sleepiness, fatigue, headache, vision and/or hearing problems, memory loss, and sleep
disruptions) as well as peripheral nervous system symptoms (peripheral neuropathy,
tingling, numbness, weakness, and pain in fingers).

 Chronic exposure to vinyl chloride has been shown to have negative effects on the
liver, kidneys, and central nervous system in animal experiments. (Public Health
Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2017) (Assessment, 2016)

 For vinyl chloride, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has defined a
Reference Concentration (RfC) of 0.1 milligrams per cubic meter and a Reference
Dose (RfD) of 0.003 milligrams per kilogram per day. (Agency, 2017)

5.3 Cancer Risks

 Inhaled vinyl chloride has been linked to an increased risk of a rare type of liver
cancer in humans called angiosarcoma of the liver. (Public Health Service, U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, 2017).
  Animal studies have demonstrated that inhaling vinyl chloride increases the risk of
angiosarcoma of the liver and liver cancer. (Assessment, 2016)

 Vinyl chloride is a human carcinogen classed as Group A by the EPA. The

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employs mathematical models based on
animal studies to assess the likelihood of a person developing cancer from inhaling air
with a certain concentration of a pollutant. For lifelong exposure to vinyl chloride, the
EPA established an inhaling unit risk estimate of 8.8 × 10 -6(µg/m 3) -1. (Agency,
2017)

 Several rat studies suggest a strong early-life vulnerability to vinyl chloride's

carcinogenic effect, i.e., early exposures are linked to a higher incidence of liver
cancer than equivalent or much longer exposures after maturity. (Comanita & Ghinea,
2015)

5.4 Reproductive/ Developmental Effects:

 Vinyl chloride appears to influence male sexual performance, according to several

case studies. However, due to a lack of quantitative exposure data and the possibility
of co-occurring exposure to other chemicals, these investigations are limited. (Public
Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2017).
 Several epidemiological studies have found a link between poly vinyl chloride
exposure and an increased risk of birth abnormalities in pregnant women.
 In rats exposed to low doses for up to 12 months, testicular injury and impaired male
fertility have been recorded. (R J Richards, L M Cobb, C J Hardy, F A Rose, T D
Tetley, 2018). Animal studies have found that offspring of rats exposed to vinyl
chloride through inhalation had lower fetal weight and birth abnormalities at levels
that are likewise harmful to maternal animals. (R J Richards, L M Cobb, C J Hardy, F
A Rose, T D Tetley, 2018)

PVC and chemicals related to PVC have been shown to harm aquatic organisms, as
well as turtles and birds, in the following ways: they obstruct digestive tracts, lessen
the desire to eat, and modify eating behaviour, all of which impair growth and
reproductive production. Some species suffer and die as a result of their intestines
being packed with plastic. Plastic particles have chemical consequences in addition to
mechanical ones, because free-floating contaminants such as polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and heavy metals that
wash off the land and into our seas tend to stick to their surfaces. Ground-up
polyethylene, which is used to produce some types of plastic bags, was soaked in San
Diego Bay for three months by Chelsea Rochman, an ecology professor at the
University of Toronto. She then fed this infected plastic to Japanese medakas, little
fish often employed in research, for two months, along with a laboratory diet. The fish
who ate the treated plastic had higher liver damage than the fish that ate the virgin
 plastic. (Drugs, insecticides, and other contaminants are more difficult to process in
fish with weakened livers.) Oysters exposed to microscopic particles of polystyrene—
the component used in take-out food containers—produce fewer eggs and less motile
sperm, according to another experiment.
Microplastics (MPs) have increased dramatically in the aquatic environment, posing a
major threat to marine and freshwater ecosystems. However, little is known about the
potential harm that polyvinyl chloride microplastics (PVC-MPs) could do to aquatic
creatures. The effects of 2 1 and 50 10 m PVC-MPs on reproductive parameters,
oxidative stress, and the expression of reproduction and detoxification-related genes
in Daphnia magna were examined in this study. Chronic exposure to 2 1 m PVC-MPs
increased the total number of broods per female and the frequency of moulting per
adult, while decreasing the number of offspring at first brood and total number of
offspring per female in D. magna.
Furthermore, 2 1 m PVC-MPs disrupted SOD and CAT activities while increasing GSH and
MDA levels. Vtg, SOD, CAT, CYP314 and CYP360A8 gene expression also showed distinct
response patterns depending on exposure time. Furthermore, 50 10 m PVC-MPs reduced
offspring at the first brood and Vtg mRNA levels, while increasing SOD and CAT
transcription levels and activities. These findings imply that PVC-MPs in the aquatic
environment may cause reproduction toxicity in D. magna by altering the expression of
reproduction and detoxification-related genes and producing oxidative stress. (YangLiu,
JialZhang, Haoyang, ZhaoJiCai, YousefSultan, HaiyanFang, April 2022)

Based on the review of the literature performed to support the development of this document,
a number of research needs have been identified:

Plastic debris has been shown to retain or sorb compounds of concern in studies,
although chemical exchange kinetics under weathering, degradation, and biofilm
formation are poorly known (Koelmans, A.A., 2015) .More research is needed to
acquire a better knowledge of the fate of chemicals that have been sorbed to and in
plastics in various environments and within an organism after ingestion.
2. Although laboratory experiments and modelling approaches show that chemicals can
transfer from plastic to organisms, because organisms in the environment can
accumulate the same classes of chemicals from other sources, more research is needed
on the relative role of plastics in chemical contaminant transfer to organisms' tissues
compared to other exposure pathways (aqueous dermal exposure and ingestion of
natural prey).
3. It's difficult to tell the difference between chemical and physical effects of plastics in
the field. Both the compounds linked with plastics and the plastic itself have been
demonstrated to have toxicological effects in laboratory trials. More research is
needed to determine the relative implications of ingested plastic particles' physical
and chemical effects.
4. Nano plastics are less well understood than other plastic size classes, and they are
challenging to investigate due to a lack of detection tools (Koelmans, A.A., 2015).
However, further research is needed because nano plastics have a greater surface area
than microplastics, which could lead to higher concentrations per unit weight. If nano
 plastics can traverse tissue and cellular membranes, they may have additional effects
and potentially long retention durations, potentially increasing their risk (Koelmans,
A.A., 2015).

6 Bibliography
Richard C. Thompson, C. J. (2009). Plastics, the environment and human health: current
consensus and future trends. 10.
Comanita, E.-D., & Ghinea, C. (2015). Environmental Impacts of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Production Process. The 5th IEEE International Conference on E-Health and
Bioengineering - EHB 2015.
P. Corabieru, A. C. (2014). New approaches in the design of plastic products for easy
recycling. Environmental Engineering and Management Journal,, 13.
Ram Proshad , Tapos Kormoker , Md. Saiful Islam , Mohammad Asadul Haque , Md.
Mahfuzur Rahman , Md. Mahabubur Rahman Mithu. (2018). Toxic effects of plastic
on human health and environment : A consequences of health risk assessment in
Bangladesh. International Journal of Health, 6.
Mohammad Mahdi Shahsavar, Nasim Ghadami, Mehran Akrami, Reza Aghlmand and
Mohammad Gheibi. (4 August,2021). Evaluation of life cycle in the process of
production and management of PVC waste by LCA method and prediction of toxicity
(TEQ) effect of dioxins using Artificial Neural Network method and nonlinear
regression. Civil Engineering, Tehran.
Ungureanu-Comanita Elena-Diana, Cristina Ghinea. (November,2020). Environmental
Impacts of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Production Process.
Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2017). Toxicological
Profile for Vinyl Chloride (Update). Atlanta: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry (ATSDR).
National Toxicology Information Program, N. L. (2010). Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical
Substances (RTECS, online database). . U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services.
Assessment, O. o. (2016). Technical Support Document for the Determination of Noncancer
Chronic Reference Exposure Levels. Bereley: California Environmental Protection
Agency (CalEPA).
Agency, U. E. (2017). Health Effects Assessment Summary Tables. FY2017 Update. Cincinnati:
Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office, Office of Health and Environmental
Assessment.
R J Richards, L M Cobb, C J Hardy, F A Rose, T D Tetley. (2018). Effects in the rat of inhaling
PVC dust at the nuisance dust level. National Library of Medicine.