By Gregory Havel
Since the inception of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations regarding hazardous materials—including combustible and flammable liquids—the categories “flammable” and “combustible” have not matched the boundaries of similar classifications in National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 704,System for the Identification of the Hazards of Materials for Emergency Response,2012年版以及大多数紧急响应者已经熟悉的其他NFPA标准。
According to the NFPA standards, a flammable liquid is any liquid with a flash point below 100°F (37.8°C):
- Class IC液体的闪点低于100°F（37.8°C）。
- Class IB liquids have a flash point below 73°F (22.8°C) and a boiling point at or above 100°F (37.8°C).
- IA级液体的闪光点低于73°F（22.8°C）和低于100°F（37.8°C）的沸点。
根据美国DOT规定，易燃液体是闪光点低于140°F（60℃）的任何液体，其包括NFPA I类易燃液体和II类可燃液体。必须标记和张扣易燃液体，并致委托用红色易燃液位标语。
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According to the U.S. DOT regulations, a combustible liquid is any liquid with a flash point at or above 140°F (60°C), which includes NFPA Class IIIA and IIIB combustible liquids. These must be labeled and placarded for transport with red combustible liquid placards.
图1的上半部分(点击放大s a PDF) show the relationship between the categories of “flammable” and “combustible” liquids in NFPA 704 and other NFPA codes and standards and the U.S. DOT regulations. These are based on the flash point of the liquid, except for the boundary between NFPA Class IA and IB, as described above.
The middle section of Figure 1 shows the relationship of the hazard categories established in NFPA 704, with the classifications as flammable and combustible liquids. Note that in this system, “0” is not considered ignitable, while “4” is considered extremely flammable.
A few years ago, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) adopted the United Nations’ “Globally Harmonized System” (GHS) of product labeling and safety data sheets (SDSs), which are similar to the material SDSs required by the U.S. DOT. This is the new system for use in places of employment, including construction job sites, and is presently in a transition between the old OSHA regulations (which match the current U.S. DOT regulations) and the United Nations’ GHS, and which must be fully implemented by employers, chemical manufacturers, importers, and distributors by the end of 2015.
The bottom section of Figure 1 shows the relationship of the hazard categories under the GHS with the NFPA and U.S. DOT classifications. Under the GHS:
- 类别1大约是闪点和沸点到NFPA类IA的等同物。除了其其他属性所需的任何其他象形图之外，它还包括信号字“危险”和易燃象形图（图2）。
- 第2类别由闪点和沸点到NFPA类IB大致等同。除了其其他属性所需的任何其他象形图之外，它还包括信号字“危险”和易燃象形图（图2）。
- Category 3 is approximately equivalent by flash point to NFPA Class IC flammable liquids and Class II combustible liquids. On the SDS, it will include the signal word “WARNING” and either a flammable pictogram (Figure 2) or a general warning pictogram (Figure 3) in addition to any other pictograms required by its other properties.
- Category 4 is approximately equivalent by flash point to NFPA Class IIIA combustible liquids. On the SDS, it will include no signal word (unless required by its other properties) and may have either a flammable pictogram (Figure 2) or a general warning pictogram (Figure 3) in addition to any other pictograms required by its other properties.
- 类别5由闪点到NFPA类IIIB可燃液以及NFPA 704类0（不可点燃）等同。在SDS上，它将包括没有信号字（除非其其他属性需要），并且根据易燃性或可燃性的性质需要具有象形图。
Figure 2 Figure 3
Some key points to know regarding chemicals labeled according to the GHS system, and their SDSs follow:
- 分类之间的分区与我们习惯的划分和NFPA代码和标准不匹配。
- The numbering of the hazard categories in the GHS is opposite that of the NFPA 704 system and the OSHA-compliant Hazardous Materials Identification System.
- Neither the U.S. DOT nor the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plan, at this time, to adopt the United Nations’ GHS as OSHA has done.
- The SDS required under the GHS is similar but not identical to the material safety data sheet (MSDS) required under the U.S. DOT and EPA regulations, although it contains all of the required information plus additional data. The GHS-format SDS is also longer than its counterpart under the U.S. DOT. Ten-page SDSs are not uncommon.
- The U.S. DOT labeling and MSDS regulations are keyed on the single most serious hazard presented by the chemical or product, while the GHS system includes signal words and pictograms for all of the product’s known hazards.
- 由于U.S. DOT可能会接受它来代替当前格式，因此GHS格式SDS将变得非常常见。GHS格式SDS包含点的所有信息，并且包括由OSHA，U.S.或美国EPA此时不需要的附加信息。
- 一些化学品制造商严格地遵守GHS SDS标准，而其他化学品制造商包括其他信息，例如NFPA 704下的分类。
Emergency service workers need to become familiar with the GHS, its labels, and its SDSs because these are likely to be the information with which we will be given to work when responding to incidents at construction job sites, manufacturing facilities, and business establishments, although some U.S. DOT-compliant information may still be present for some time.
有关GHS和基本培训材料的详细信息，请访问https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/index.html.
对于GHS格式SDSS的样本，请访问以下网站：
- www.phillips66.com. Click on “Products and Services” under “SDS.” Key in one of the product names such as “gasoline” (select “Gasoline, Reformulated with Ethanol”), “diesel” (select “No.2 Diesel Fuel”), or “fuel oil” (select “No.4 Fuel Oil”).
- http://www.amerigas.com/business. Click on “Safety Data Sheet.”
- http://www.oatey.com/Channel/Shared/ProductResource/MSDS_Sheets.html和产品编号“1403e”的键。
- 查看其他制造商和产品网站，了解GHS和其他格式的MSDSS和SDS的示例。
Note: The references to the Web sites above are included as examples of SDSs only and are not to be understood as endorsements of either products or manufacturers.
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格雷戈里哈维尔是伯灵顿（Wi）消防部门镇的成员;退休副主任和培训人员;和35年的消防服务老兵。他是威斯康星州认证的消防教练II，消防官II和消防检查员;网关技术学院消防服务计划的辅助讲师;和Scherrer Construction Co.，Inc。哈维尔的安全总监哈尔特学士学位乘坐圣诺伯特学院学士学位;拥有超过35年的设施管理和建筑施工经验;并在FDIC上提出了课程。
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