# Patterson Companies, Inc. — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

**Citation:** 13-0076  
**Type / status:** guidance / guidance  
**Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** 2013-07-15

13-0076 response to Patterson Companies, Inc. concerning 172.405, 173.132, 173.22.

## Document text

<<<PAGE 1>>>

U.S. Department
of Transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety
Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, D.C. 20590
JUL 1 5 2013
Mr. Robb Boros
Patterson Companies, Inc.
1905 Lakewood Drive
Boone, Iowa 50036
Reference No. 13-0076
Dear Mr. Boros:
This is in response to your April 11, 2013 letter requesting clarification on the classification
of a material under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (I-IMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). The
material you describe in your letter is a 47.6% solution of gluteraldehyde using a shipping
name of "Corrosive liquid, organic, n.o.s." You state that according to the National Institute
of Health, glutaraldehyde has an LD50 value of 134 mg/kg. Further, in your letter you state
that using the equation provided in§ 173.132(c)(3) resulted in a calculated LD50 value of
280.69 mg/kg oral rat. You ask if the results of the calculation are correct, would the
glutaraldehyde solution meet the definition of a toxic liquid? In addition, you ask whether it
is permitted to apply the Packing Group (PG) III toxic label authorized in§ 172.405(c) as the
subsidiary hazard label in addition to the corrosive diamond label?
In accordance with § 173.22, it is the shipper's responsibility to properly classify a hazardous
material. This Office does not generally perform that function. However, based on the test
results you provided, the material does meet the LD50 criteria for acute oral toxicity. Also,
based on this information, we agree that the material does meet the definition in
§ 173.132(a)(l)(i) for a Division 6.1 material. Therefore, if the material has a subsidiary
hazard which is classed as Division 6.1, Packing Group III, the subsidiary "POISON" label
may be modified to display the text "PG III" instead of"POISON" or "TOXIC" below the
mid line of the label as specified in § 172.405( c).
I hope this satisfies your request.
Sincerely,
c--Y#~~~·
T. Glenn Foster
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division

<<<PAGE 2>>>

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~113 ·13cfl(t)(3)
~ 11~, !4f~6 {e)
Drakeford, Carolyn (PHMSA)
From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:
Importance:
INFOCNTR (PHMSA)
Thursday, April 11, 2013 3:57 PM
Drakeford, Carolyn (PHMSA)
FW: Glutaraldehyde solution 47.6%
High
Hi Carolyn,
This caller requested we submit his e-mail as a formal letter of interpretation.
Thanks,
Victoria
From: robb.boros@pattersoncompanies.com [mailto:robb.boros@pattersoncompanies.com]
Sent: Wednesday, April 10, 2013 6:30 PM
To: INFOCNTR (PHMSA)
Subject: Glutaraldehyde solution 47.6%
Importance: High
A company classifies a 47.6% solution of glutaraldehyde as Corrosive liquid, acidic, organic, n.o.s .. However, several
sources, including the NIH, has identified Glutaraldehyde as having an LD50 value of 134mg/kg oral rat. Upon calculating
the toxicity using the equation in 173.132(c)(3) resulted in a calculated LD50 value of 280.69 mg/kg oral rat.
Question 1:
Based on the calculation above, am I correct that the glutaraldehyde solution would meet the definition of a toxic liquid
since the calculated value is less than 300mg/kg oral rat?
Question 2:
If my understanding above is correct, the full shipping description would be UN2922, Corrosive liquid, toxic, n.o.s.
(Glutaraldehyde), 8(6.1 ), PGII. But since the toxicity is PG Ill would I be able to apply the packing group Ill toxic label
authorized in 172.405(c) as the subsidiary hazard label in addition to the corrosive diamond label?
Thanks
Robb Boros
Regulatory Compliance Specialist
Patterson Companies, Inc.
515.433.1700 (Fax 1701)
NOTICE: This email transmission and any attachments that accompany it may contain information that is confidential or
otherwise exempt from disclosure under applicable law and is intended solely for the use of the individual(s) to whom it was
intended to be addressed. If you have received this email by mistake, or you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure,
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1

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2013/130076.pdf>
- Source ID: `phmsa`
- SHA-256: `3a58dbd1b8db74250987ec4fdc34149d8d32d346ab839b2613b4c7707b8f5d7c`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-20T00:59:31.977Z
- Exported: 2026-08-25T07:06:19.366Z
- Document slug: `phmsa-interpretation-13-0076`

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