Quick Search
N-Nitrosodimethylamine = Dimethylnitrosoamine
CAS Number : 62-75-9
EC Number : 200-549-8
ECHA InfoCard : 100.000.500
PubChem CID : 6124
ChemSpider : 5894
Chemical formula : C2H6N2O
Molar mass : 74.083 g·mol−1
Odor : faint, characteristic
Boiling point : 153.1 °C
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), also known as dimethylnitrosamine (DMN), is an organic compound with the formula (CH3)2NNO.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is one of the simplest members of a large class of N-nitrosamines.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is a volatile yellow oil.
NDMA has attracted wide attention as being highly hepatotoxic and a known carcinogen in laboratory animals.
Occurrence of N-Nitrosodimethylamine
Drinking water
Of more general concern, NDMA can be produced by water treatment by chlorination or chloramination.
The question is the level at which it is produced.
In the U.S. state of California, the allowable level is 10 nanograms/liter.
The Canadian province of Ontario set the standard at 9 ng/L.
The potential problem is greater for recycled water that can contain dimethylamine.
Further, NDMA can form or be leached during treatment of water by anion exchange resins.
Contamination of drinking water with NDMA is of particular concern due to the minute concentrations at which it is harmful, the difficulty in detecting it at these concentrations, and to the difficulty in removing it from drinking water.
NDMA does not readily biodegrade, adsorb, or volatilize.
As such, it cannot be removed by activated carbon and travels easily through soils.
Relatively high levels of UV radiation in the 200 to 260 nm range breaks the N–N bond.
Thus, it can thus be used to degrade NDMA.
Additionally, reverse osmosis removes approximately 50% of NDMA.
Cured meat
NDMA is found at low levels in numerous items of human consumption, including cured meat, fish, beer, as well as during use of tobacco products and the inhalation of tobacco smoke.
Rocket fuel
Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine, a rocket fuel, is a highly effective precursor to NDMA:
(CH3)2NNH2 + 2 O → (CH3)2NNO + H2O
Groundwater near rocket launch sites often has high levels of NDMA.
Chemistry of N-Nitrosodimethylamine
The C2N2O core of NDMA is planar, as established by X-ray crystallography.
The central nitrogen is bound to two methyl groups and the NO group with bond angles of 120°.
The N-N and N-O distances are 1.32 and 1.26 Å, respectively.
NDMA forms from a variety of dimethylamine-containing compounds, e.g. hydrolysis of dimethylformamide.
Dimethylamine is susceptible to oxidation to unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine, which air-oxidizes to NDMA.
In the laboratory, NDMA can be synthesised by the reaction of nitrous acid with dimethylamine:
HONO + (CH3)2NH → (CH3)2NNO + H2O
The mechanism of its carcinogenicity involves metabolic activation steps resulting in the formation of methyl diazonium, an alkylating agent.
Several incidents in which NDMA was used intentionally to poison another person have garnered media attention.
In 1978, a teacher in Ulm, Germany, was sentenced to life in prison for trying to murder his wife by poisoning jam with NDMA and feeding it to her.
Both the wife and the teacher later died from liver failure.
In 1978, Steven Roy Harper spiked lemonade with NDMA at the Johnson family home in Omaha, Nebraska.
The incident resulted in the deaths of 30-year-old Duane Johnson and 11-month-old Chad Shelton.
For his crime, Harper was sentenced to death, but committed suicide in prison before his execution could be carried out.
In the 2013 Fudan poisoning case, Huang Yang, a postgraduate medical student at Fudan University, was the victim of a poisoning in Shanghai, China.
Huang was poisoned by his roommate Lin Senhao, who had placed NDMA into the water cooler in their dormitory.
Lin claimed that he only did this as an April Fool's joke.
He received a death sentence, and was executed in 2015.
In 2018, NDMA was used in an attempted poisoning at Queen's University in Kingston, Canada.
Physical Description of N-Nitrosodimethylamine
N-nitrosodimethylamine is a yellow oily liquid with a faint characteristic odor.
N-nitrosodimethylamine boiling point is 151-153°C.
N-nitrosodimethylamine can reasonably be expected to be a carcinogen.
Used as an antioxidant, as an additive for lubricants and as a softener of copolymers.
An intermediate in 1,1-dimethylhydrazine production.
Solubility of N-Nitrosodimethylamine is greater than or equal to 100 mg/mL at 66° F.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is infinitely soluble in water at 23-25 °C .
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is soluble in all common organic solvents and in lipids.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is very soluble in water, alcohol, ether.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is siscible with methylene chloride, vegetable oils.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is soluble in ethanol, ethyl ether, and chloroform; soluble in water.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is 1000 mg/mL at 24 °C.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is stable at room temperature for more than 14 days in neutral or alkaline solutions in the dark; slightly less stable in acidic solutions; sensitive to UV light.
When heated to decomp it emits toxic fumes of /oxides of nitrogen/.
Viscosity of N-Nitrosodimethylamine is low.
Use and Manufacturing of N-Nitrosodimethylamine
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is primarily used as a research chemical.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine has been used as an antioxidant, as an additive for lubricants, and as a softener of copolymers.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine was formerly used in the production of rocket fuels.
Used as an intermediate in the production of 1,1-dimethylhydrazine; DMNA contaminates common organic amines and may occur as a byproduct of industrial processes; [ACGIH]
NDMA has been used as an intermediate in the manufacture of 1,1-dimethylhydrazine, which is a component of rocket propellants.
In the workplace, it also has been encountered as a contaminant of common organic amines or as a reaction by-product.
Exposures have been possible in cancer research laboratories where the material may be excreted unchanged by laboratory animals.
Industrial solvent, antioxidant;
solvent in fiber and plastics industry;
in lubricants, condensers to increase dielectric constant;
has been used as nematocide;
softener for copolymers.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine can be prepared by addition of acetic acid and sodium nitrite to dimethylamine.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is produced by industry only in small amounts for research.
At room temperature, it is a yellow liquid with no distinct odor.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine was used to make rocket fuel, but this use was stopped after unusually high levels of this chemical were found in air, water, and soil samples collected near a rocket fuel manufacturing plant.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is used in some cosmetic and toiletry products and in cleansers.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is unintentionally formed during various manufacturing processes and in air, water, and soil from reactions involving other chemicals called alkylamines.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is also found in some foods and may be formed in the body.
Individuals may be exposed to low levels of N-nitrosodimethylamine in occupational settings, through the ingestion of food that contains it (e.g., cured meat products and smoked fish), and from breathing cigarette smoke.
Acute (short-term) exposure to N-nitrosodimethylamine may damage the liver in humans, with symptoms that include nausea, vomiting, headaches, and malaise.
Chronic (long-term) exposure of humans toN-nitrosodimethylamine may cause liver damage and low platelet counts.
Severe liver damage has been observed in animals.
Limited human data are available on the carcinogenic effects of N- nitrosodimethylamine.
Animal studies have suggested that chronic ingestion and inhalation of N- nitrosodimethylamine may cause an increase in liver tumors and other types of tumors.
EPA has classified N-nitrosodimethylamine as a Group B2, probable human carcinogen.
There are no industrial or commercial uses of NDMA in Canada or the USA.
NDMA was used in Canada in the past and may still be used in other countries in rubber formulations as a fire retardant and in the organic chemical industry as an intermediate, catalyst, antioxidant, additive for lubricants, and softener of copolymers.
NDMA is the simplest dialkylnitrosamine and is known to be a by-product in various industries—for example, the manufacture of pesticides, rubber tyres, alkylamines, and dyes.
NDMA is one of the most well characterised and most potent animal carcinogens known and has been shown to be a potent carcinogen across all species that have been investigated, both as single doses and with long term exposure to lower quantities.
Although no in vivo data are available for humans, NDMA seems to be metabolised similarly in human tissue and rodent tissue.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has on this basis classified NDMA as “probably carcinogenic to humans” (group 2A), emphasising that NDMA “should be regarded for practical purposes as if it were carcinogenic to humans.
We accessed the nationwide Danish healthcare registries and conducted an expedited observational cohort study of the association between use of potentially NDMA contaminated valsartan products and risk of cancer.
Our aim was to quantify the potential consequences of NDMA contaminated drug products entering the market and to provide timely information for regulatory bodies evaluating this potential public health issue.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a volatile nitrosamine that occurs widely in the environment due to its ready formation from commonly found precursors.
NDMA is the most well-studied of several volatile N-nitrosamines that exhibit similar toxic properties (including several others that are found in tobacco smoke).
For most people, the largest source of exposure to NDMA is through endogenous production (within the body) from precursors (presence of nitrite in foods including drinking water) that occur naturally in the body or in the diet.
External sources of NDMA exposure include foods and malt beverages, water, cigarette smoke, and to a lesser extent rubber products, toiletry and cosmetic products, and pesticides.
In addition, some people may have had exposures to NDMA through the use of contaminated medications.
N-nitrosodimethylamine, or NDMA, is a yellow, odorless liquid chemical once used to make rocket fuel.
It is also a by product of several manufacturing processes and water chlorination.
Small amounts of NDMA may occur in water, soil and air.
It’s been classified as a probable human carcinogen.
Normally, NDMA breaks down when sunlight hits it, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry.
N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a chemical shown to induce tumor formation in the gastrointestinal tract, liver, lungs, and kidneys in animals.
NDMA directly activates RAS oncogenes, and methyldiazonium, its methylated metabolite, is also a mutagen.
International organizations ranging from the Environmental Protection Agency to the World Health Organization (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer have classified NDMA as a probable carcinogen.
N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a member of a family of extremely potent carcinogens, the N-nitrosamines.
Their cancer potencies are much higher than those of the trihalomethanes.
Much of the recent focus on NDMA as a drinking water contaminant can be traced to the detection of NDMA in drinking water wells near a rocket engine testing facility in Sacramento County, CA, that used unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH)-based rocket fuel.
With groundwater NDMA concentrations as high as 400,000 ng/L on site and 20,000 ng/L off site, it became necessary to close downgradient drinking water wells.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a member of a family of extremely potent carcinogens, the N-ni-trosamines.
Until recently, concerns about NDMA mainly focused on the presence of NDMA in food, consumer products, and polluted air.
However, current concern focuses on NDMA as a drinking water contaminant resulting from reactions occurring during chlorination or via direct industrial contamination.
Because of the relatively high concentrations of NDMA formed during wastewater chlorination, the in-tentional and unintentional reuse of municipal wastewater is a particularly important area of concern.
Although ultraviolet (UV) treatment can effectively remove NDMA, there is considerable interest in the de-velopment of less expensive alternative treatment technologies.
These alternative technologies include approaches for removing organic nitrogen-containing NDMA precursors prior to chlorination and the use of sunlight photolysis, and in situ bioremediation to remove NDMA and its precursors.
NDMA is a semi-volatile organic chemical that forms in both industrial and natural processes.
It is also known by the names dimethylnitrosamine (DMNA), nitrosodimethylamine, N-methyl-N-nitrosomethanamine, and N,N-dimethylnitrosamine.
A yellow liquid that has no distinct odor, NDMA is an N-nitrosamine, a type of compound that has the generic chemical structure R2N–N=O, a deprotonated amine bonded to a nitroso group.
N-nitrosamines are generally formed when a secondary or tertiary amine reacts with a nitrosating agent.
The compounds are found at low levels in certain foods and beverages, such as roasted meats, cheese, and beer, due to cooking and fermentation processes.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is found in the environment as a byproduct of industrial processes and water disinfection.
Water disinfection destroys or inactivates bacteria and other harmful microorganisms that can make people sick.
Water disinfection is essential to keeping our waters safe for recreation and drinking.
Disinfection has prevented thousands of deaths in Minnesota from waterborne diseases.
NDMA can also be found in many processed foods and beverages such as whiskey, beer, cured meats, bacon, and cheeses.
Levels of NDMA in these foods are typically much higher than levels of NDMA found in treated drinking water.
In the past, NDMA was used as an ingredient in rocket fuel, as a solvent, and as a pesticide.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is found in pepper (Capsicum annuum).
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is a food contaminant especially in cured meat products.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), also known as dimethylnitrosamine (DMN), is a semi-volatile organic chemical that is highly toxic and is a suspected human carcinogen.
The US Environmental Protection Agency has determined that the maximum admissible concentration of NDMA in drinking water is 7 ng/L.
The EPA has not yet set a regulatory maximum contaminant level (MCL) for drinking water.
At high doses, it is a "potent hepatotoxin that can cause fibrosis of the liver" in rats.
The induction of liver tumors in rats after chronic exposure to low doses is well-documented.
Its toxic effects on humans are inferred from animal experiments but not well-established experimentally.
NDMA is an industrial by-product or waste product of several industrial processes.
NDMA first came to attention as a groundwater contaminant in California in 1998 and 1999 at several sites that produced rocket fuel.
Manufacturing of unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH), which is a component of rocket fuel that requires NDMA for its synthesis, proved to be the culprit in these cases.
Of more general concern, water treatment via chlorination or chloramination of organic nitrogen-containing wastewater can lead to the production of NDMA at potentially harmful levels.
Further, NDMA can form or be leached during treatment of water by anion exchange resins.
Finally, NDMA is found at low levels in numerous items of human consumption including cured meat, fish, beer, and tobacco smoke, it is, however, unlikely to bioaccumulate.
First Aid Measures of N-Nitrosodimethylamine
Warning:
Nitrosodimethylamine is a suspected human carcinogen, hepatotoxin, and hemorrhagic agent.
Caution is advised.
Effects may be delayed.
Signs and Symptoms of Nitrosodimethylamine Exposure:
Signs and symptoms of acute exposure to nitrosodimethylamine may include myocardial and endocardial hemorrhage after oral exposure.
Pulmonary edema and congestion have been noted, as have hepatomegaly (liver enlargement), hepatitis, icterus (jaundice), and ascites (accumulation of serous fluid in the abdomen).
Other signs and symptoms may include malaise (body discomfort), vomiting, GI hemorrhage, seizures, and cerebral edema.
Emergency Life-Support Procedures:
Acute exposure to nitrosodimethylamine may require decontamination and life support for the victims.
Emergency personnel should wear protective clothing appropriate to the type and degree of contamination.
Air-purifying or supplied-air respiratory equipment should also be worn, as necessary.
Rescue vehicles should carry supplies such as plastic sheeting and disposable plastic bags to assist in preventing spread of contamination.
Inhalation Exposure:
1. Remove victims to fresh air.
Emergency personnel should avoid self-exposure to nitrosodimethylamine.
2. Evaluate vital signs including pulse and respiratory rate and note any trauma.
If no pulse is detected, provide CPR. If not breathing, provide artificial respiration.
If breathing is labored, administer 100% humidified oxygen or other respiratory support.
3. Rush to a health care facility.
4. Obtain authorization and/or further instructions from the local hospital for performance of other invasive procedures.
Dermal/Eye Exposure:
1. Remove victims from exposure.
Emergency personnel should avoid self-exposure to nitrosodimethylamine.
2. Evaluate vital signs including pulse and respiratory rate and note any trauma.
If no pulse is detected, provide CPR.
If not breathing, provide artificial respiration.
If breathing is labored, administer 100% humidified oxygen or other respiratory support.
3. Remove and isolate contaminated clothing as soon as possible.
4. If eye exposure has occurred, eyes must be flushed with lukewarm water for at least 15 minutes.
5. Wash exposed skin areas thoroughly with soap and water.
6. Obtain authorization and/or further instructions from the local hospital for performance of other invasive procedures.
7. Rush to a health care facility.
Ingestion Exposure:
1. Evaluate vital signs including pulse and respiratory rate and note any trauma.
If no pulse is detected, provide CPR.
If not breathing, provide artificial respiration.
If breathing is labored, administer 100% humidified oxygen or other respiratory support.
2. Obtain authorization and/or further instructions from the local hospital for administration of an antidote or performance of other invasive procedures.
3. Vomiting may be induced with syrup of Ipecac.
If elapsed time since ingestion of nitrosodimethylamine is unknown or suspected to be greater than 30 minutes, do not induce vomiting and proceed to Step 4.
Ipecac should not be administered to children under 6 months of age.
Warning: Ingestion of nitrosodimethylamine may result in sudden onset of seizures or loss of consciousness.
Syrup of Ipecac should be administered only if victims are alert, have an active gag-reflex, and show no signs of impending seizure or coma.
If ANY uncertainty exists, proceed to Step 4.
The following dosages of Ipecac are recommended:
Children up to 1 year old, 10 mL (1/3 oz); children 1 to 12 years old, 15 mL (1/2 oz); adults, 30 mL (1 oz).
Ambulate (walk) the victims and give large quantities of water.
If vomiting has not occurred after 15 minutes, Ipecac may be readministered.
Continue to ambulate and give water to the victims.
If vomiting has not occurred within 15 minutes after second administration of Ipecac, administer activated charcoal.
4. Activated charcoal may be administered if victims are conscious and alert.
Use 15 to 30 g (1/2 to 1 oz) for children, 50 to 100 g (1-3/4 to 3-1/2 oz) for adults, with 125 to 250 mL (1/2 to l cup) of water.
5. Promote excretion by administering a saline cathartic or sorbitol to conscious and alert victims.
Children require 15 to 30 g (1/2 to 1 oz) of cathartic; 50 to 100 g (1-3/4 to 3-1/2 oz) is recommended for adults.
6. Rush to a health care facility.
Eye: Irrigate immediately - If this chemical contacts the eyes, immediately wash (irrigate) the eyes with large amounts of water, occasionally lifting the lower and upper lids.
Get medical attention immediately.
Skin: Soap wash immediately - If this chemical contacts the skin, immediately wash the contaminated skin with soap and water.
If this chemical penetrates the clothing, immediately remove the clothing, wash the skin with soap and water, and get medical attention promptly.
Breathing: Respiratory support
Swallow: Medical attention immediately - If this chemical has been swallowed, get medical attention immediately.
Drug contamination
In 2018, and then again in 2019, various brands of valsartan were recalled because of contamination with NDMA.
In 2019, ranitidine was recalled across the world due to contamination with NDMA.
In December 2019, the FDA began testing samples of the diabetes drug metformin for NDMA.
The FDA announcement followed a recall of three versions of metformin in Singapore, and the European Medicines Agency's request that manufacturers test for NDMA.
In September 2019, N-nitrosodimethylamine was discovered in ranitidine products from a number of manufacturers, resulting in recalls.
In April 2020, ranitidine was withdrawn from the United States market, suspended in the European Union, and suspended in Australia due to concerns about NDMA.
In August 2021, a class 2 medicines recall was issued for a batch of metformin hydrochloride 500mg/5ml Oral Solution from Rosemont Pharmaceuticals Limited, which was first distributed in December 2020, due to the identification of higher than acceptable levels of NDMA.
Effect on biological systems of N-nitrosodimethylamine
A study has shown that NDMA perturbs arginine biosynthesis, mitochondrial genome maintenance and DNA damage repair in yeast.
NDMA is a drinking water contaminant of concern because of its miscibility with water, as well as its carcinogenicity and toxicity.
NDMA is a semivolatile organic chemical that forms in both industrial and natural processes.
It is member of N-ni- trosamines, a family of potent carcinogens.
Synonyms include dimethylnitrosamine (DMNA), nitrosodimethylamine, N-methyl-N-nitrosomethanamine and N,N-dimethylnitrosamine.
Uses of N-nitrosodimethylamine
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is primarily used as a research chemical.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine has been used as an antioxidant, as an additive for lubricants, and as a softener of copolymers.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine was formerly used in the production of rocket fuels.
Sources and Potential Exposure of N-nitrosodimethylamine
Individuals are most likely to be exposed to N-nitrosodimethylamine in occupational settings such as in the rubber, tannery, fish processing, dye, and surfactant industries.
Humans may be exposed to low levels of N-nitrosodimethylamine through the ingestion of food that contains it, such as cured meat products and smoked fish.
Other exposures to the chemical may be from drinking contaminated water and from breathing cigarette smoke and contaminated ambient air.
Physical Properties of N-nitrosodimethylamine
The chemical formula for N-nitrosodimethylamine is C2H6N2O, and its molecular weight is 74.08 g/mol.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is a yellow, oily liquid that is very soluble in water.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine has a faint characteristic odor; the odor threshold has not been established.
The log octanol/water partition coefficient (log Kow) is 0.57 and the vapor pressure is 2.7 mm Hg at 20°C.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is the simplest dialkylnitrosamine.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine is no longer used industrially or commercially in Canada or the USA but continues to be released as a by-product and contaminant from various industries and from municipal wastewater treatment plants.
Major releases of NDMA have been from the manufacture of pesticides, rubber tires, alkylamines, and dyes.
NDMA may also form under natural conditions in air, water, and soil as a result of chemical, photochemical, and biological processes and has been detected in drinking-water and in automobile exhaust.
Photolysis is the major pathway for the removal of NDMA from surface water, air, and land.
However, in surface waters with high concentrations of organic substances and suspended matter, photodegradation is much slower.
In subsurface water and in soil, biodegradation is the removal pathway of importance.
NDMA is unlikely to be transported over long distances in air or to partition to soil and sediments.
Because of its solubility and low partition coefficient, NDMA has the potential to leach into and persist in groundwater.
It is metabolized and does not bioaccumulate.
NDMA is generally not detectable in surface waters, except for localized contamination from industrial sites, where endof-pipe effluent concentrations as high as 0.266 µg/litre have been measured.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine, or NDMA, is the simplest dialkylnitrosamine, with a molecular formula of C2H6N2O and a relative molecular mass of 74.08.
NDMA belongs to a class of chemicals known as N-nitroso compounds, characterized by the Nnitroso functional group (–N–N=O), and to the family of nitrosamines, which, in addition, possess an amine function (–NR2 , where R is H or an alkyl group).
NDMA is also known as dimethylnitrosamine, dimethylnitrosoamine, N,N-dimethylnitrosamine, N-methyl-Nnitrosomethanamine, N-nitroso-N,N-dimethylamine, DMN, and DMNA.
NDMA is a volatile, combustible, yellow, oily liquid.
NDMA is susceptible to photolytic breakdown due to its absorption of ultraviolet light.
The physical/chemical properties relevant to the environmental fate of NDMA and utilized in the modelling of environmental partitioning.
Physical/chemical property Value
Melting point (°C) 50
Boiling point (°C) 151–154
Log Kow 0.57
Vapour pressure 1080 Pa (25 °C)
Henry’s law constant 3.34 Pa m3/mol (25 °C)
Solubility miscible
Natural sources of N-nitrosodimethylamine
NDMA can be formed as a result of biological, chemical, or photochemical processes.
It may be present in water, air, and soil due to chemical reaction between ubiquitous, naturally occurring precursors classified as nitrosatable substrates (secondary amines) or nitrosating agents (nitrites) .
For example, NDMA may form in air during nighttime as a result of the atmospheric reaction of dimethylamine (DMA) with nitrogen oxides.
Soil bacteria may also synthesize NDMA from various precursor substances, such as nitrate, nitrite, and amine compounds .
Anthropogenic sources of N-nitrosodimethylamine
NDMA is produced as a by-product of industrial processes that use nitrate and/or nitrites and amines under a range of pH conditions.
This is due to inadvertent formation when alkylamines, mainly DMA and trimethylamine, come into contact and react with nitrogen oxides, nitrous acid, or nitrite salts or when trans-nitrosation via nitro or nitroso compounds occurs.
Therefore, NDMA may be present in discharges of such industries as rubber manufacturing, leather tanning, pesticide manufacturing, food processing, foundries, and dye manufacturing and, as a result, in sewage treatment plant effluent.
Almost all of the releases in the source country are to water.
NDMA has also been detected in emissions from diesel vehicle exhaust.
NDMA may form directly in sewage as a result of the biological and chemical transformation of alkylamines in the presence of nitrate or nitrite.
It may also be released into the environment as the result of application of sewage sludge to soils rich in nitrate or nitrite.
NDMA is not currently produced in pure form or commercially used in the United States, except for research purposes.
It was formerly used in production of liquid rocket fuel, antioxidants, additives for lubricants and softeners for copolymers.
NDMA can be unintentionally produced in and released from industrial sources through chemical reactions, such as those that involve alkylamines with nitrogen oxides, nitrous acid or nitrite salts.
Potential industrial sources include byproducts from tanneries, pesticide manufacturing plants, rubber and tire manufacturers, alkylamine manufacture and use sites, fish processing facilities, foundries and dye manufacturers.
NDMA is also an unintended by product of the chlorination of wastewater and drinking water at treatment plants that use chloramines for disinfection.
NDMA contamination may be found in air, soil and water.
When released to the air, NDMA is expected to exist solely as vapor in the ambient atmosphere and is broken down quickly by direct photolysis in sunlight.
The estimated half-life of NDMA vapor in the ambient atmosphere with direct photolysis is about 5 to 30 minutes.
When released to soil, NDMA can be highly mobile and has the potential to leach into groundwater.
In water, NDMA is completely miscible and is not expected to sorb onto solid particles or sediment.
As a result of exposure to sunlight or by natural biological processes, NDMA may break down in water.
The estimated half-life for direct photolysis of NDMA in water is about 16 minutes.
The rate of biodegradation in the natural environment has been observed to be highly variable.
At rocket engine testing facilities in California, NDMA has been found at high concentrations in groundwater on site (up to 400,000 nanograms per liter [ng/L]) and also in downgradient drinking water wells (up to 20,000 ng/L).
In a 2002 survey conducted by the California Department of Health Services (CDHS), elevated concentrations of NDMA were detected in locations where wastewater treatment plant effluent was used for aquifer recharge and near facilities that use unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH)-based rocket fuel.
Substance identity
EC / List no.: 200-549-8
CAS no.: 62-75-9
Mol. formula: C2H6N2O
Hazard classification & labelling of N-nitrosodimethylamine
Danger! According to the harmonised classification and labelling (CLP00) approved by the European Union, N-nitrosodimethylamine is fatal if inhaled, is toxic if swallowed, may cause cancer, causes damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure and is toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects.
N-nitrosodimethylamine predicted as likely to meet criteria for category 1A or 1B carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, or reproductive toxicity, or with dispersive or diffuse use(s) where predicted likely to meet any classification criterion for health or environmental hazards, or where there is a nanoform soluble in biological and environmental media.
N-nitrosodimethylamine indicated, in 2009, as being intended to be registered by at least one company in the EEA.
N-nitrosodimethylamine for which an agreed set of classification and labelling data has been agreed at EU level by Member States.
N-nitrosodimethylamine for which classification and labeling data have been submitted to ECHA in a registration under REACH or notified by manufacturers or importers under CLP.
Such notifications are required for hazardous substances, as such or in mixtures, as well as for all substances subject to registration, regardless of their hazard.
N-nitrosodimethylamine for which industrial accident prevention and reporting requirements have been established.
N-nitrosodimethylamine listed in the EINECS, ELINCS, or NLP inventories.
SYNONYM:
Dimethylnitrosoamine
Dimethylnitrosoamine
dimethylnitrosoamine
dimethylnitrosoamine; N-nitrosodimethylamine
Methanamine, N-methyl-N-nitroso-
N-nitrosodimethylamine
<I>N</I>-nitrosodimetilamin (hr)
dimethylnitrosoamin (cs)
dimethylnitrosoamin (da)
Dimethylnitrosoamin (de)
dimethylnitrosoamine (nl)
dimetilnitrosamin (hr)
dimetilnitrosoamina (es)
dimetilnitrosoamina (it)
dimetilnitrozaminas (lt)
dimetilnitrozoamin (sl)
dimetilnitrozoamina (ro)
dimetilnitrozoamīns (lv)
dimetyl(nitrózo)amín (sk)
dimetylnitrosamin (no)
dimetylnitrosamin (sv)
dimetylonitrozoamina (pl)
Dimetyylinitrosamiini (fi)
diméthylnitrosoamine;N-nitrosodiméthylamine (fr)
N-nitrosodimethylamin (cs)
N-Nitrosodimethylamin (de)
N-nitrosodimetilamina (es)
N-nitrosodimetilamina (it)
N-nitrosodimetilamina (pt)
N-nitrosodimetylamin (no)
N-Nitrosodimetyyliamiini (fi)
N-nitrosodimetüülamiin (et)
N-nitrosodiméthylamine (fr)
N-nitrozodimetil-amin (hu)
N-nitrozodimetilamin (sl)
N-nitrozodimetilamina (ro)
N-nitrozodimetilaminas (lt)
N-nitrozodimetilamīns (lv)
N-nitrozodimetyloamina (pl)
N-nitrózodimetylamín (sk)
N-нитрозодиметиламин (bg)
Nnitrosodimetylamin (sv)
διμεθυλονιτροζαμίνη (el)
диметилнитрозоамин (bg)
Methanamine, N-methyl-N-nitroso-
dimethyl(nitroso)amine
dimethylnitrosamine
Dimethylnitrosoamine
dimethylnitrosoamine
N-NITROSODIMETHYLAMINE
Dimethylnitrosamine
N,N-dimethylnitrous amide
N-Nitrosodimethylamine
N-nitrosodimethylamine
612-077-00-3
62-75-9
Dimethylnitrosoamine
N,N-dimethylnitrous amide
N-Methyl-N-nitrosomethanamine
N,N-Dimethylnitrosamine
Nitrosodimethylamine
Methanamine, N-methyl-N-nitroso-
DMNA
Dimethylnitrosamin
N-Nitroso-N,N-dimethylamine
Dimethylamine, N-nitroso-
N-Nitroaodimethylamine
N-Dimethyl-nitrosamine
RCRA waste number P082
nitrous dimethylamide
NSC 23226
N-methyl-N-nitroso-methanamine
DMN
Dimethylnitrosamin [German]
UNII-M43H21IO8R
1,1-Dimethyl-2-oxohydrazine
N-dimethylnitrosoamine
dimethyl(nitroso)amine
n-nitroso-dimethylamine
(CH3)2NNO
MLS001065602
M43H21IO8R
CHEBI:35807
SMR000568479
DSSTox_CID_1029
Dimethylnitrosamin (german)
DSSTox_RID_75914
DSSTox_GSID_21029
Nitrosamine, dimethyl-
CAS-62-75-9
CCRIS 261
N Nitrosodimethylamine
Methanamine,N-methyl-N-nitroso-
HSDB 1667
NDMA Nitrosodimethylamine
EINECS 200-549-8
Nitrosodimethylamine, NDMA
RCRA waste no. P082
BRN 1738979
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA)
AI3-25308
Methamine, N-methyl-N-nitroso-
dimethyl-nitrosamine
N, N-Dimethylnitrosamine
N,N-dimethyl nitrous amide
N,N-dimethyl-nitrous amide
cid_6124
N, N-dimethyl nitrous amide
N-N-Dimethyl N Nitrosoamine
N-Methyl-N-nitroso-Methamine
BIDD:ER0584
WLN: ONN1&1
CHEMBL117311
DTXSID7021029
1,1-Dimethyl-2-oxohydrazine #
BDBM73982
NSC23226
ZINC4658628
N-Methyl-N-nitrosomethanamine, 9CI
Tox21_201663
Tox21_302873
6868AF
NSC-23226
AKOS016000499
AT21751
MCULE-1157726226
NCGC00091431-01
NCGC00091431-02
NCGC00091431-03
NCGC00256498-01
NCGC00259212-01
N-Nitrosodimethylamine, analytical standard
D0761
FT-0672951
N-Nitrosodimethylamine 0.2 mg/ml in Methanol
A833977
N-Nitroso-dimethylamine 10 microg/mL in Methanol
N-Nitroso-dimethylamine 100 microg/mL in Methanol
N-nitrosodimethylamine 1000 microg/mL in Methanol
Q409367
N-Nitrosodimethylamine 1000 microg/mL in Dichloromethane
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) 5000 microg/mL in Methanol
N-nitrosodimethylamine 1000 microg/mL in Methanol, Second Source
