Registration Dossier
Registration Dossier
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EC number: 240-383-3 | CAS number: 16291-96-6 An amorphous form of carbon produced by partially burning or oxidizing wood or other organic matter.
Endpoint summary
Administrative data
Description of key information
Additional information
Charcoal is substantially elemental carbon.It has no functional groups that could bring about solubility in water and organic solvents.
Its vapour pressure is negligible. It cannot be further degraded by hydrolysis, light or by photodegradation in air or in surface water.
These physico-chemical properties are reason why important parameters like water solubility, octanol/water partition coefficient, dissociation constant or adsorption/desorption which are relevant for environmental fate and distribution cannot be analytically measured.Based on these properties it is expected that charcoal will not occur in air or water in relevant amounts. Also potential for distribution via water or air, respectively, can be dismissed. The deposition in soil or sediments is therefore the most relevant compartment of fate of charcoal in the environment, but carbon is widely distributed in nature and an essential element in the components of all living organisms. Charcoal is thus not expected to be detrimental in any way to the environment.
Based on the physical-chemical properties of carbon black as an inert solid, its insolubility and stability in water and in organic solvents, diffusion through the gills or through the membranes of the body of the aquatic organisms and bioaccumulation is not expected.
As an inorganic compound with the chemical structure "C", carbon black will not be further biodegraded by microorganisms.
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