Bisisopropyl peroxydicarbonate

Biodegradation in water: screening tests

Description of key information

The biodegradation of diisopropyl peroxydicarbonate attained 20% after 28 days in a test performed according to OECD guideline 301D.

Therefore, the peroxide cannot be considered as readily biodegradable.

Key value for chemical safety assessment

Biodegradation in water:

not biodegradable

Type of water:

freshwater

Additional information

A study was performed to assess the ready biodegradability of the test item in an aerobic aqueous medium. The method was designed to be compatible with the OECD Guideline 301D and GLP requirements. As the test item contained diisopropyl peroxydicarbonate in ethyl acetate, solvent control vessels were prepared with the same concentration of ethyl acetate as present in the test item vessels in order to correct for any oxygen depletion that occurs in the test item vessels due to biodegradation from the ethyl acetate.

The test item, at a concentration of 2.0 mg/L, was exposed to sewage treatment micro-organisms with mineral medium in sealed culture vessels in the dark at approximately 21 °C for 28 days. The degradation of the test item was assessed by the determination of the amount of oxygen consumed. Control solutions with inoculum and the reference item, sodium benzoate, together with a toxicity control were used for validation purposes. 

The biodegradation of diisopropyl peroxydicarbonate attained 20% after 28 days and therefore cannot be considered to be readily biodegradable under the strict terms and conditions of OECD Guideline 301D. The validity criteria were fulfilled.