Names | |
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Pronunciation | /ˈsɑːrɪn/ |
Preferred IUPAC name
Propan-2-yl methylphosphonofluoridate | |
Other names
(RS)-O-Isopropyl methylphosphonofluoridate; IMPF;
GB;[2] 2-(Fluoro-methylphosphoryl)oxypropane; Phosphonofluoridic acid, P-methyl-, 1-methylethyl ester EA-1208 TL-1618 T-144 | |
Identifiers | |
3D model (JSmol)
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ChEBI | |
ChEMBL | |
ChemSpider | |
PubChem CID
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UNII | |
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
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Properties | |
C4H10FO2P | |
Molar mass | 140.094 g·mol−1 |
Appearance | Clear colourless liquid, brownish if impure |
Odor | Odourless in pure form. Impure sarin can smell like mustard or burned rubber. |
Density | 1.0887 g/cm3 (25 °C) 1.102 g/cm3 (20 °C) |
Melting point | −56 °C (−69 °F; 217 K) |
Boiling point | 158 °C (316 °F; 431 K) |
Miscible | |
log P | 0.30 |
Hazards | |
Occupational safety and health (OHS/OSH): | |
Main hazards
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Extremely lethal cholinergic agent. |
GHS labelling: | |
NFPA 704 (fire diamond) | |
Threshold limit value (TLV)
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0.00003 mg/m3 (TWA), 0.0001 mg/m3 (STEL) |
Lethal dose or concentration (LD, LC): | |
LD50 (median dose)
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39 μg/kg (intravenous, rat)[3] |
NIOSH (US health exposure limits): | |
IDLH (Immediate danger)
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0.1 mg/m3 |
Safety data sheet (SDS) | Lethal Nerve Agent Sarin (GB) |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Sarin (NATO designation GB [short for G-series, "B"]) is an extremely toxic organophosphorus compound.[4] A colourless, odourless liquid, it is used as a chemical weapon due to its extreme potency as a nerve agent. Exposure can be lethal even at very low concentrations, where death can occur within one to ten minutes after direct inhalation of a lethal dose,[5][6] due to suffocation from respiratory paralysis, unless antidotes are quickly administered.[4] People who absorb a non-lethal dose and do not receive immediate medical treatment may suffer permanent neurological damage.[citation needed]
Sarin is widely considered a weapon of mass destruction. Production and stockpiling of sarin was outlawed as of April 1997 by the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993, and it is classified as a Schedule 1 substance.
... death can occur within one minute of direct inhalation as the lung muscles are paralyzed.
The nerve agents sarin and VX. Colourless and tasteless, they cause death by respiratory arrest in one to 15 minutes.