Registration Dossier
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EC number: 201-167-4 | CAS number: 79-01-6
- 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

Biodegradation in soil
Administrative data
Link to relevant study record(s)
- Endpoint:
- biodegradation in soil, other
- Type of information:
- experimental study
- Adequacy of study:
- weight of evidence
- Reliability:
- 2 (reliable with restrictions)
- Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:
- other: Published in peer reviewed literature, notable limitations in design and/or reporting, but adequate for assessment
- Principles of method if other than guideline:
- Degradation of trichloroetylene was tested in contaminated and uncontaminated soil materials under aerobic conditions in soil in which toluene was added as a co-substrate
- GLP compliance:
- not specified
- Test type:
- not specified
- Oxygen conditions:
- aerobic
- Soil classification:
- other: contaminated and uncontaminated soil materials
- Duration:
- 220 h
- Initial conc.:
- 1 other: microgram/ml
- Based on:
- test mat.
- Remarks on result:
- not measured/tested
- Transformation products:
- not measured
- Details on results:
- Substantial trichloroethylene degradation only occurred in the uncontaminated sample after 220 hours and trichloroethylene did not degrade at all in the absence of toluene. The results indicated that mineral nutrients limited the rate of trichloroethylene and toluene degradation by indigenous populations.
- Endpoint:
- biodegradation in soil, other
- Type of information:
- experimental study
- Adequacy of study:
- weight of evidence
- Reliability:
- 2 (reliable with restrictions)
- Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:
- other: Published in peer reviewed literature, notable limitations in design and/or reporting, but adequate for assessment
- Principles of method if other than guideline:
- Static microcosms were constructed with a low carbon content, field-contaminated soil containing 18.1 µmol/kg ww trichloroethylene. Incubation at 20 C resulted in reductive dechlorination under sulfate-reducing conditions.
- GLP compliance:
- not specified
- Test type:
- laboratory
- Radiolabelling:
- no
- Oxygen conditions:
- anaerobic
- Soil classification:
- other: natural soil
- Soil no.:
- #1
- % Clay:
- 25
- % Silt:
- 70
- % Sand:
- 5
- % Org. C:
- 0.17
- pH:
- 8.1
- Details on soil characteristics:
- A contaminated soil sample was obtained from a photocopier refurbishing facility in New York State (USA). The soil samples were collected from a depth of 0.6-1.8 m in mid 1990 and stored in sealed, amber glass jars with minimum headspace at 4 C in the dark
- Soil No.:
- #1
- Duration:
- 332 d
- Soil No.:
- #1
- Initial conc.:
- 18.1 other: µmol/kg ww
- Based on:
- test mat.
- Parameter followed for biodegradation estimation:
- test mat. analysis
- Soil No.:
- #1
- Temp.:
- 20 oC
- Key result
- DT50:
- 61.3 d
- Type:
- (pseudo-)first order (= half-life)
- Temp.:
- 20 °C
- Transformation products:
- yes
- No.:
- #1
- Evaporation of parent compound:
- yes
- Volatile metabolites:
- yes
- Residues:
- no
- Endpoint:
- biodegradation in soil, other
- Type of information:
- experimental study
- Adequacy of study:
- weight of evidence
- Reliability:
- 2 (reliable with restrictions)
- Rationale for reliability incl. deficiencies:
- other: Published in peer reviewed literature, notable limitations in design and/or reporting, but adequate for assessment
- Principles of method if other than guideline:
- Trichloroethylene (200-300 microgram/l) was incubated in the presence of methane with a mixed soil culture.
- GLP compliance:
- not specified
- Test type:
- not specified
- Soil classification:
- other: mixed soil culture
- Duration:
- 30 d
- Initial conc.:
- ca. 250 other: microgram/l
- Based on:
- test mat.
- Key result
- % Degr.:
- 90
- Parameter:
- not specified
- Sampling time:
- 8 d
- Key result
- % Degr.:
- 100
- Parameter:
- not specified
- Sampling time:
- 30 d
- Transformation products:
- not measured
Referenceopen allclose all
The potential for microbial communities in contaminated and uncontaminated soil materials to aerobically degrade trichloroethylene and toluene was measured. The biodegradation of trichloroethylene (1mg/l) and toluene (20mg/l) was measured in samples of material from contaminated and uncontaminated sites. Substantial trichloroethylene degradation only occurred in the uncontaminated sample after 220 hours and trichloroethylene did not degrade at all in the absence of toluene. The results indicated that mineral nutrients limited the rate of trichloroethylene and toluene degradation by indigenous populations.
Incubation of trichloroethylene with a contaminated soil was carried out at 20 °C. Reductive dechlorination of trichloroethylene was observed under both sulphate-reducing and methanogenic conditions. Low levels of vinyl chloride were produced.
Trichloroethylene (200-300 microgram/l) was incubated in the presence of methane with a mixed soil culture. After 8 days, 10% of trichloroethylene remained; after 30 days, 100% of the trichloroethylene was degraded.
Description of key information
Within a weight of evidence approach it was concluded that as well in soil, biotransformation seems to occur more readily under anaerobic conditions under specific conditions like co-substrates.
Key value for chemical safety assessment
Additional information
Various information is available for TCE investigating the biodegradation in soil under certain conditions. It can be deduced from available data that degradation is more pronounced under anaerobic conditions and in the presence of co-substates.
However, trichloroethylene can also be degraded also under aerobic conditions by a process of co-oxidation when other suitable co-substrates (e.g. methane or toluene) are also present to support growth of the microorganisms and induce the formation of enzymes which due to their broad substrate specificity, can also degrade trichloroethylene.
There is extensive work which shows that under anaerobic conditions, trichloroethylene degrades by a process of reductive dehalogenation, resulting in the formation of lower chlorinated homologues as reaction products. Although metabolites are known to occur, the terminal product of reductive dehalogenation is ethylene.
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