{"operation":"document","citation":"18-0013","title":"Environmental Resource Center — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2018-07-13","effective_on":null,"summary":"18-0013 response to Environmental Resource Center concerning 171.8, 172.101, 172.202, 173.151, 173.27, 173.4.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-18-0013.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-18-0013.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-18-0013","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/docs/standards-rulemaking/hazmat/interpretations/60256/180013.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, DC 20590\nJUL 1 3 2018\nKristie Absher\nSenior Consultant\nEnvironmental Resource Center\n101 Center Pointe Drive\nCary, NC 27513\nReference No. 18-0013\nDear Ms. Absher:\nThis letter is in response to your December 11, 2017 letter; your subsequent January 25, 2018\nletter; and a recent phone conversation with a member of my staff requesting clarification of the\nHazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to authorized\nquantity exceptions for hazardous materials.\nSpecifically, you provide six scenarios where you have an inner receptacle (tube) that contains\ntwo materials1 in different quantities. You state that Material A (i.e., \"UN3089, Metal powders,\nflammable, n.o.s., 4.1, II\") will be tightly compacted in the bottom portion of the tube and\nMaterial B will be placed loosely inside the tube above Material A without a physical barrier\nseparating the two components from mixing.\nWe have paraphrased and answered your questions as follows:\nQ 1. You ask if the small quantity limit in § 1 73 .4 applies only to Material A or to the\ncombined amount of Material A and Material B in the inner receptacle with respect to the\n30-gram limit for a Division 4.1 hazardous material.\n·Al. The small quantity limit applies to the hazardous material, Material A. Based on the\ninformation you provided and the understanding that Material B is not a hazardous\nmaterial in accordance with the HMR, Material A cannot exceed the maximum inner\nreceptacle quantity limit of 30 grams (1 ounce) for a Division 4.1, PG II, flammable solid\nmaterial.\nQ2. You ask if the.excepted quantity limit in§ 173.4a applies only to Material A or to the\ncombined amount of Material A and Material B with respect to the 30-gram limit per\n1 One of the materials is not classified as hazardous material per the HMR but is an environmentally hazardous\nsubstance internationally (UN3077).\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nA2. Q3. A3. Q4. A4. Q5. AS. · Q6. inner packaging and 500-gram limit per outer packaging for Division 4.1, Packing Group\n(PG) II material.\nThe excepted quantity limits apply to the hazardous material, Material A. Based on the\ninformation you provided, Material A may not exceed the maximum inner packaging\nlimit of 30 grams (1 ounce) for solids. In addition, the outer packaging aggregate\nquantity limit for Material A cannot exceed the maximum aggregate quantity limit of 500\ngrams (I.I pounds) for solids.\nYou ask if the limited quantity limit in § 173 .151 applies only to Material A or to the\ncombined amount of Material A and Material B when the quantity for a Division 4.1,\nPG II material is limited to 1 kilogram per inner packaging.\nThe limited quantity limit of 1 kilogram applies to the net capacity of the inner packaging\nand not the amount of Material A or the combined amount of Material A and Material B.\nTherefore, in this instance, the limit would apply to the inner packaging that contains\nboth Material A and Material B.\nYou ask if the entry (i.e., the hazardous material description) on a shipping paper must\nindicate the weight of Material A only or the combined weight of Material A and\nMaterial B.\nSection 172.202(a)(5) requires indication of the total quantity of hazardous materials\ncovered by the description and the applicable unit of measurement (e.g., kilograms),\nwhich applies to Material A only. However, additional information may be provided\nafter the basic description to communicate that additional non-hazardous material is also\nin the package.\nYou ask if for air shipments the entry on a shipping paper must indicate the total mass of\nMaterial A only. or the combined mass of Material A and Material B.\nSection 172.202(a)(6) requires the total net mass of the hazardous material per package to\nbe indicated on the shipping paper unless a gross mass is indicated in Columns (9A) and\n(9B) of the§ 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table, in which case the total gross mass per\npackage must be indicated. Material A (UN3089) specifically indicates a net mass in\nColumn (9A) for passenger aircraft and a net mass in Column (9B) for cargo aircraft. If\nthe package is transported via aircraft, the net mass may not exceed 15 kilograms (33\npounds) on a passenger aircraft or 50 kilograms (110 pounds) on a cargo-only aircraft for\na PG II package. In addition, § 172.202(a)(6)(vii) requires hazardous materials in limited\nquantities the total net quantity per package to be indicated unless a gross mass is\nindicated in column 4 of§ 173.27 Table 3, in which case the total gross mass per package\nmust be indicated. Please note, Table 3 allows a maximum authorized net quantity of\n5 kg (11 lbs.) for the outer package of a Division 4.1, PG II hazardous material.\nYou ask if your product meets the HMR definition for \"mixture\" even though it contains\ntwo distinct and separate components in the same tube (i.e., may test results obtained\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nfrom a thorough mixing of the.two components be used for hazard classification purposes\neven if the components are layered for shipping purposes).\nA6. The HMR defines \"mixture\" as a material composed of more than one chemical\ncompound or element (see§ 171.8). Based on the information you provided, it is the\nopinion of this Office that the contents in the tube as prepared for transportation are not\nconsidered a mixture since both materials are distinct and separate in the tube. According\nto the test report data provided, Material A and Material B were tested as a mixture and\ndetermined to no longer meet the definition of a Division 4.1 material. However, the\nproduct was not tested in the form in which it will be transported in commerce and you\ncannot use these test results to be excluded from being a Division 4.1 hazardous material.\nPlease note, if a facility tested both Material A and Material B in the manner in which the\ntube will be transported in commerce and proved the product is no longer a Division 4.1\nmaterial, then your product would not be subject to the HMR.\nI hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.\nSin~:~ely . ,,/-7' , ~\n;.·~ //.~ . ; /¼~ /~\n/ / 4\n&fi'rkD . de\nChief, Standards Development Branch\nStandards and Rulemaking Division\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\n~\n-\n~s -t-S~ ()(lli ~\nI!- (){)13\n!!nuary, lkeya CTR (PHMSA)\nFrom:\nSent:\nTo:\nSubject:\nAttachments:\nINFOCNTR (PHMSA)\nFriday, January 26, 2018 2:43 PM\nHazmat Interps\nFW: Request for Interpretation\nRequest for Interpretation.pdf\nHello all,\nPlease see below and attached LOI request. Spoke to the requester, she confirmed that her company mailed the letter\nto us on the 11th of December, but she never received a receipt of reply from us. She re-sent yesterday to ensure that\nwe have received her request.\nRegards,\n-Breanna\nFrom: Kristie Absher [mailto:kabsher@ercweb.com]\nSent: Thursday, January 25, 2018 11:56 AM\nTo: INFOCNTR (PHMSA) <INFOCNTR.INFOCNTR@dot.gov>\nSubject: Request for Interpretation\nDear DOT Representative:\nAttached is a letter requesting interpretation of the DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations. My company\nmailed the letter on December 11 but when I called the Hazardous Materials Info Center today for an update,\nyour representative Alex could not locate the letter in your files. She suggested that I resend the letter via e-\nmail o this address to receive assistance.\nI look forward to hearing your response to the questions posed.\nThank you,\nKristie Absher\nEnvironmental Resource Center\n101 Center Pointe Dr.\nCary, NC 27513\n919-469-1585 X 402\n919-342-0807 fax\nkabsher@ercweb.com\nhttp://www. ercweb. com\nCorrect EHS violations before EPA, OSHA, or DOT find them. Contact Environmental Resource Center for a\ncomprehensive environmental, safety, or hazardous material transportation audit. For details, contact\nservice@ercweb.com.\n1\n\n<<<PAGE 5>>>\n\nEnvironmental Resource CenterfJ\n101 Canter Pointe Drive• Cary, North Carolina 27513-5706 • phone 919-469-1585 • fax 919-342-0807 • www.arcweb.com\nDecember 11 , 201 7\nMr. Shane Kelley\nActing Director, Standards and Rulemaking Division\nU.S. DOT/PHMSA (PHH-10)\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE East Building, 2nd Floor\nWashington, DC 20590\nDear Mr. Kelley:\nI am requesting assistance on quantity information for exceptions and shipping papers, and on the\ndefinition of a mixture. Your input is appreciated.\nThe products in question contain two components, in various quantities:\n1. Material A\na. UN 3089, Metal powders, flammable, n.o.s., 4.1, II per DOT, IMO, and ICAO\n2. Material B\na. Non-hazardous per DOT\nb. UN 3077, Environmentally hazardous substance, solid, n.o.s. (dicopper oxide), 9, III\ndue to aquatic toxicity per IMO and ICAO\nBased on recent testing, when the components are thoroughly mixed, the resulting mixture does not meet\nthe definition of Division 4.1 and would not be regulated for shipment. However, for shipping, the\ncomponents in the product are layered, not mixed, in the same tube (inner package), as shown:\n1. 2. Material A is tightly compacted in the bottom grid of the tube\nMaterial B is placed loosely in the tubes above Material A\n2. Material B\n-\n1. Material A\n\n<<<PAGE 6>>>\n\nWhen used, the loose Material B pours easily from the tube while Material A remains in the grid inside the\ntube. To loosen/remove Material A, the bottom of tube must be tapped.\nQuestion 1, Small quantity exception (49 CFR 173.4): For Division 4.1 materials, the quantity per\ninner receptacle is limited to 30 grams. Does this quantity limit apply only to the hazardous Material\nA, or to the entire contents (Material A and non-hazardous Material B) in our tube?\nQuestion 2, Excepted quantity exception ( 49 CFR 173.4a): For Division 4.1 Packing Group II\nmaterials, the quantity of hazardous material is limited to 30 grams per inner packaging and 500\ngrams per outer packaging. Do these quantity limits apply only to the hazardous Material A, or to the\nweight of the entire product (Material A and non-hazardous Material B) in our inner and outer\npackagings?\nQuestion 3, Limited quantity exception (49 CFR 173.154): For Division 4.1 Packing Group II\nmaterials, the quantity is limited to 1 kilogram per inner packaging. Does this quantity limit apply\nonly to the hazardous Material A, or to the weight of the entire product (Material A and non-\nhazardous Material B) in our inner packagings?\nQuestion 4, Shipping papers (49 CFR 172.202(a)(5)): For ground shipments that require a shipping\npaper, the total quantity of hazardous materials must be indicated. Must this entry indicate the weight\nof the hazardous Material A only, or the weight of the entire product (Material A and non-hazardous\nMaterial B)?\nQuestion 5, Shipping papers (49 CFR 172.202(a)(6)): For air shipments that require a shipping\npaper, the total net mass per package must be indicated. Must this entry indicate the total mass of the\nhazardous Material A only, or the mass of the entire product (Material A and non-hazardous Material\nB)?\nQuestion 6, Definition of Mixture (49 CFR 171.8): Mixture is defined as a material composed of\nmore than one chemical compound or element. Is this product considered a mixture per DOT\nbecause the components are in the same tube, even though they are separate, distinct layers with\ndifferent hazards (Division 4.1 and non-hazardous)? If a mixture, may the test results obtained for a\nthorough mixing of the two components be used for hazard classification purposes, even though they\nare layered for shipping purposes?\nThank you for your assistance.\nSincerely,\nKristie Absher\nSenior Consultant","truncated":false,"body_characters":11590}