Guidanceguidance
04-0229
Consultant au Service De La Pétrochimie — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation
Current as of source date Government source
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Page 1of Transportation U.S. Department OCT 28 2004 400 Seventh St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590 Research and Special Programs Administration Mr. Eric-Michael Deschenes, PE Rei No. 04-0229 Ultragen Consultant au Service De La Pétrochimie 2117 Fernand-Lafontaine Longueuil (Québec) J4G 2J4 Canada Dear Mr. Deschenes: This is in response to your September 29, 2004 letter requesting clarification on an appropriate test method under § 173.121 to determine the packing group of a flammable liquid under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) • Specifically, you ask which test method must be used to determine the initial boiling point of a flammable liquid. The HMR do not specify a particular test method. Therefore, any test method that can accurately • determine the initial boiling point of a flammable liquid may be used to determine the packing group under § 173.121(a). The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Guideline for the Testing of Chemicals, No. 103 "Boiling Point" outlines seven possible test methods for determining boiling point of a liquid. I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if you require additional assistance. Sincerely, Hitle enth l Hattie I. Mitchell Office of Hazardous Materials Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Standards 173:121 040229#
Page 2Pollack $173.121 ULTRAGEN Applicability Longueuil (Québec 2117 Fernand-Lafontaine CONSULTANT AU SERVICE DE LA PÉTROCHIMIE 04-0229 J4G 2J4 Téléphone : Fax: (450) 677-6364 (450) 674-3852 Longueuil, September 29", 2004 Edward Mazzullo US DOT/RSPA (DHM-10) Director, Office of Hazardous Materials Standards 400 7* Street SW Washington DC, 20590-0001 OBJECT : INTERPRETATION OF CFR 49 173.121 Mr. Mazzullo, I have tried (to no avail) to find a definition or a reference to a standard test method for determining the Initial Boiling Point (or IBP) of a flammable liquid according to 49 CFR group of Class 3 flammable liquids. Although the definition of Flash Point is made quite 173.121. This criterion, along with the Flash Point, is used in assessing the packing clear in the regulations, that of the initial boiling point is left to interpretation. Could you please provide the test method which is implicitly referred to in defining the cut-point between packing groups I and I (namely IBP<95F for group I and >95F for group II). Many thanks for the anticipated clarification, Best regards, no Erc-Michel Deschenes, PE Process Engineering Group Ultragen tel: 450-677-6364 fax:450-674-3852 eric.deschenes@ultragen.com#
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