IRIS Toxicological Review of Carbon Tetrachloride (External Review Draft)

Carbon tetrachloride has been used as a dry-cleaning agent, fabric-spotting fluid, solvent, reagent in chemical synthesis, fire extinguisher fluid, and grain fumigant, but its primary use was in chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) production. Production of this chemical peaked in the early 1970s; annual production has generally declined since the mid-1970s. The Consumer Product Safety Commission banned the use of carbon tetrachloride in consumer products in the 1970s. Decline in the use of carbon tetrachloride also accompanied EPA’s increased regulation of the use of CFCs in propellants, and the Montreal Protocol, which was implemented in the U.S. via Title VI of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 and that called for a ban (with certain exemptions) on production and import of carbon tetrachloride.

Following the External Peer Review, the final assessment will be published on the IRIS database.