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Home Products Manufacturers Ingredients Health Effects
Brand Information
Product Name: Zerex DEX-Cool Antifreeze/Coolant
Form: liquid
Product Category: Auto Products » Cooling System » antifreeze/coolant
Auto Products » Antifreeze » cooling system
Customer Service: 859-357-7206
Date Entered: 2006-04-04
Related Items: Products with similar usage in this database
Manufacturer
Manufacturer: Valvoline Co., The
Affil., Ashland Inc.
Address: P.O. Box 14000
City: Lexington
State: KY
Zip Code: 40512
Telephone Number: 800-825-8654
Toll Free Number: 800-825-8654
Date Info Verified: 2008-01-09
Related Items: Products by this manufacturer
The following information (Health Effects, Handling/Disposal, and Ingredients) is taken from the product label and/or the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) prepared by the manufacturer. The National Library of Medicine does not test products nor does it evaluate information from the product label or the MSDS.
Health Effects
Enter text or highlight term...
Acute Health Effects: From MSDS
HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION
Primary Route(s) of Entry Inhalation, Skin absorption, Skin contact, Eye contact, Ingestion - Industrial products are not meant to be swallowed.

Potential Health Effects
Eye: Material is corrosive to eyes. May cause burns.
Skin: Can cause skin burns and other permanent skin damage. The feeling of irritation or burning may be delayed following skin contact with 45% or 50% potassium hydroxide solutions. Contact with mist or dust may cause multiple small skin burns. Although rare, skin contact with ethylene glycol may cause allergic skin reaction (delayed skin rash which may be followed by blistering, scaling and other skin effects). Passage through the skin may add to toxic effects from breathing or swallowing.
Swallowing: Swallowing this material may be harmful or fatal. Symptoms may include severe stomach and intestinal irritation, burns and tissue damage. Shock may occur. Liver, kidney and brain damage in humans has resulted from swallowing lethal or near-lethal amounts of ethylene glycol.
Inhalation: Breathing of vapor or mist is possible. Breathing this material may be harmful or fatal. May cause severe irritation and burns to the nose, throat, and respiratory tract. Symptoms usually occur at air concentrations higher than the recommended exposure limits.

Symptoms of Exposure
Signs and symptoms of exposure to this material through breathing, swallowing, and/or passage of the material through the skin may include: stomach or intestinal upset (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea) irritation (nose, throat, airways), cough, central nervous system excitation (giddiness, liveliness, light-headed feeling) followed by central nervous system depression (dizziness, drowsiness, weakness, fatigue, nausea, headache, unconsciousness) and other central nervous system effects, involuntary eye movement, pain in the abdomen and lower back, cyanosis (causes blue coloring of the skin and nails from lack of oxygen), lung edema (fluid buildup in the lung tissue), acute kidney failure (sudden slowing or stopping of urine production), kidney damage, liver damage, lung damage, convulsions, coma, and death.
Chronic Health Effects: From MSDS
No information provided.
Carcinogenicity: From MSDS
Based on the available information, this material cannot be classified with regard to carcinogenicity. This material is not listed as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the National Toxicology Program, or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
First Aid: From MSDS
Eyes: If material gets into the eyes, immediately flush eyes gently with water for at least 15 minutes while holding eyelids apart. If symptoms develop as a result of vapor exposure, immediately move individual away from exposure and into fresh air before flushing as recommended above. Seek immediate medical attention.
Skin: Immediately flush skin with water for at least 15 minutes while removing contaminated clothing and shoes. Seek immediate medical attention. Wash clothing before reuse and decontaminate or discard contaminated shoes. Remove contaminated clothing. Wash exposed area with soap and water. If symptoms persist, seek medical attention. Launder clothing before reuse.
Swallowing: Seek immediate medical attention. Do not induce vomiting. Vomiting will cause further damage to the mouth and throat. If individual is conscious and alert, immediately rinse mouth with water and give milk or water to drink. If possible, do not leave individual unattended.
Inhalation: If symptoms develop, immediately move individual away from exposure and into fresh air. Seek immediate medical attention; keep person warm and quiet. If person is not breathing, begin artificial respiration. If breathing is difficult, administer oxygen.

Note to Physicians This product contains ethylene glycol. Ethanol decreases the metabolism of ethylene glycol to toxic metabolites. Ethanol should be administered as soon as possible in cases of severe poisoning since the elimination half-life of ethylene glycol is 3 hours. If medical care will be delayed several hours, give the patient three to four 1-ounce oral "shots" of 86-proof or higher whiskey before or during transport to the hospital. Fomepizole (4-methylpyrazole) is an effective antagonist of alcohol dehydrogenase, and as such, may be used as an antidote in the treatment of ethylene glycol poisoning. Hemodialysis effectively removes ethylene glycol and its metabolites from the body. Effects of acute ethylene glycol poisoning appear in three fairly distinct stages. The initial stage occurs shortly after exposure, lasts 6-12 hours, and is characterized by central nervous system effects (transient exhilaration, nausea, vomiting, and in severe cases, coma, convulsions, and possible death. The second stage lasts from 12-36 hours after exposure and is initiated by the onset of coma. This phase is characterized by tachypnea, tachycardia, mild hypotension, cyanosis, and in severe cases, pulmonary edema, bronchopneumonia, cardiac enlargement, and congestive failure. The final stage occurs 24-72 post-exposure and is characterized by renal failure ranging from a mild increase in blood urea nitrogen and creatinine followed by recovery to complete anuria with acute tubular necrosis that can lead to death. Oxaluria is found in most cases. The most significant laboratory finding in ethylene glycol intoxication is severe metabolic acidosis. Preexisting disorders of the following organs ( or organ systems) may be aggravated by exposure to this material: skin, lung (for example, asthma-like conditions), liver kidneys, central nervous system, Exposure to this material may aggravate any pre-existing condition sensitive to a decrease in available oxygen, such as chronic lung disease, coronary artery disease or anemias.
Health Rating: 3
Flammability Rating: 1
Reactivity Rating: 0
HMIS Rating Scale: 0 = Minimal; 1 = Slight; 2 = Moderate; 3 = Serious; 4 = Severe; 
N = No information provided by manufacturer; * = Chronic Health Hazard
MSDS Date: 2002-01-14
Handling/Disposal
Handling: From MSDS
Containers of this material may be hazardous when emptied. Since emptied containers retain product residues (vapor, liquid, and/or solid), all hazard precautions given in the data sheet must be observed. All five gallon pails and larger metal containers including tank cars and tank trucks should be grounded and/or bonded when material is transferred. Warning. Sudden release of hot organic chemical vapors or mists from process equipment operating at elevated temperature and pressure, or sudden ingress of air into vacuum equipment, may result in ignitions without the presence of obvious ignition sources. Published "autoignition" or "ignition" temperature values cannot be treated as safe operating temperatures in chemical processes without analysis of the actual process conditions. Any use of this product in elevated temperature processes should be thoroughly evaluated to establish and maintain safe operating conditions.
Disposal: From MSDS
Dispose of in accordance with all applicable local, state and federal regulations.
Ingredients from MSDS/Label
ChemicalCAS No / Unique IDPercent
Ethylene glycol000107-21-189
Diethylene glycol000111-46-61-10
2-Ethylhexanoic acid000149-57-51-8
Potassium hydroxide001310-58-31-6
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