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EC number: 240-383-3 | CAS number: 16291-96-6 An amorphous form of carbon produced by partially burning or oxidizing wood or other organic matter.
- Life Cycle description
- Uses advised against
- Endpoint summary
- Appearance / physical state / colour
- Melting point / freezing point
- Boiling point
- Density
- Particle size distribution (Granulometry)
- Vapour pressure
- Partition coefficient
- Water solubility
- Solubility in organic solvents / fat solubility
- Surface tension
- Flash point
- Auto flammability
- Flammability
- Explosiveness
- Oxidising properties
- Oxidation reduction potential
- Stability in organic solvents and identity of relevant degradation products
- Storage stability and reactivity towards container material
- Stability: thermal, sunlight, metals
- pH
- Dissociation constant
- Viscosity
- Additional physico-chemical information
- Additional physico-chemical properties of nanomaterials
- Nanomaterial agglomeration / aggregation
- Nanomaterial crystalline phase
- Nanomaterial crystallite and grain size
- Nanomaterial aspect ratio / shape
- Nanomaterial specific surface area
- Nanomaterial Zeta potential
- Nanomaterial surface chemistry
- Nanomaterial dustiness
- Nanomaterial porosity
- Nanomaterial pour density
- Nanomaterial photocatalytic activity
- Nanomaterial radical formation potential
- Nanomaterial catalytic activity
- Endpoint summary
- Stability
- Biodegradation
- Bioaccumulation
- Transport and distribution
- Environmental data
- Additional information on environmental fate and behaviour
- Ecotoxicological Summary
- Aquatic toxicity
- Endpoint summary
- Short-term toxicity to fish
- Long-term toxicity to fish
- Short-term toxicity to aquatic invertebrates
- Long-term toxicity to aquatic invertebrates
- Toxicity to aquatic algae and cyanobacteria
- Toxicity to aquatic plants other than algae
- Toxicity to microorganisms
- Endocrine disrupter testing in aquatic vertebrates – in vivo
- Toxicity to other aquatic organisms
- Sediment toxicity
- Terrestrial toxicity
- Biological effects monitoring
- Biotransformation and kinetics
- Additional ecotoxological information
- Toxicological Summary
- Toxicokinetics, metabolism and distribution
- Acute Toxicity
- Irritation / corrosion
- Sensitisation
- Repeated dose toxicity
- Genetic toxicity
- Carcinogenicity
- Toxicity to reproduction
- Specific investigations
- Exposure related observations in humans
- Toxic effects on livestock and pets
- Additional toxicological data

Acute Toxicity: oral
Administrative data
- Endpoint:
- acute toxicity: oral
- Type of information:
- other: Assessment
- Adequacy of study:
- key study
- Reliability:
- 2 (reliable with restrictions)
- Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:
- other: Reliability score 2 on the basis of the weight of evidence found during review of public documents relating to toxicity of charcoal and related carbon compounds
Data source
Reference
- Reference Type:
- other company data
- Title:
- Unnamed
- Year:
- 2 013
- Report date:
- 2013
Materials and methods
Test guideline
- Qualifier:
- no guideline followed
- Principles of method if other than guideline:
- Assessment of public documents relating to historical toxicity reviews of charcoal and related carbon compounds
- GLP compliance:
- not specified
- Test type:
- other: Assessment
Test material
- Reference substance name:
- Charcoal
- EC Number:
- 240-383-3
- EC Name:
- Charcoal
- Cas Number:
- 16291-96-6
- Molecular formula:
- C
- IUPAC Name:
- Charcoal
- Details on test material:
- Review on charcoal and related carbon compounds.
Constituent 1
Test animals
- Species:
- other: Human - medical uses
Administration / exposure
- Route of administration:
- oral: unspecified
Results and discussion
Effect levels
- Dose descriptor:
- other: Effect levels
- Effect level:
- > 1 000 mg/kg bw
- Based on:
- act. ingr.
Applicant's summary and conclusion
- Interpretation of results:
- not classified
- Remarks:
- Migrated information Criteria used for interpretation of results: EU
- Conclusions:
- Evidence from human exposure suggests low toxicity
Further animal testing is not justified - Executive summary:
Ingestion of charcoal is not an expected route of exposure in normal use especially when in lump or granular form. Charcoal is sold commercially mainly for use as a fuel but Charcoal has been used since the earliest times for a range of purposes including art and medicine, as a source of carbon black (used in gunpowder) and due to its high surface area can be used as a filter, as a catalyst or as an adsorbent.
The use of charcoal in medicine is varied. Charcoal was consumed in the past as dietary supplement for gastric problems in the form of charcoal biscuits. Now it can be consumed in tablet, capsule or powder form, for digestive effects although research regarding its effectiveness is controversial. However activated charcoal has been widely used to treat poisonings and overdoses. Dosing is usually 1 gram/kg of body mass (for adolescents or adults, give 50–100 g), usually given only once, but depending on the drug taken, it may be given more than once. Activated carbon has become the treatment of choice for many poisonings.
There are a number of medical articles relating to the use of charcoal in human and veterinary medicine. The article below gives a good overview of the use of activated charcoal in medical situations where oral administration would be expected. J Med Toxicol. 2010 June; 6(2): 190–198. Activated Charcoal for Acute Poisoning: One Toxicologist’s Journey. Kent R. Olson According to this paper, although charcoal is generally considered a benign treatment, there are some risks with its use. Many patients vomit and a few of them aspirate gastric contents into the lungs causing a pneumonitis. Addition of a cathartic may cause diarrhea and failure to give a laxative may cause constipation or the formation of charcoal briquettes in the intestinal tract.
Charcoal has been blamed for appendicitis and intestinal perforation in single case reports. There is no evidence that charcoal or activated charcoal is orally toxic. In fact all evidence suggests that it is beneficial in certain circumstances as a treatment for removing toxins from the stomach and gastric tract. On this basis, the testing required for this end point is not justified and it is suggested that charcoal is non-toxic orally.
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