Arsine and Stibine
Key Points
Fire
- Extremely flammable
- Arsine and stibine react with strong oxidants. Stibine reacts with chlorine and concentrated nitric acid
- Arsine emits toxic fumes of arsenic when heated to decomposition
- In the event of a fire involving arsine or stibine, use fine water spray and liquid and gas tight chemical protective clothing with breathing apparatus
Health
- Toxic by inhalation
- Arsine is very toxic, stibine is harmful
- The health effects of arsine and stibine are similar and are characterised by damage to the red blood cells (haemolysis)
- The onset of symptoms following short-term exposure may be delayed for several hours
- Short-term inhalation of arsine or stibine may cause weakness, headache, drowsiness, sickness, anaemia, abdominal pain, shortness of breath, yellow skin and eyes and red urine
- The effect of long-term exposure is thought to cause similar symptoms as short-term exposure
- Arsine is not thought to cause damage to the unborn child
Environment
- Dangerous for the environment
- Inform Environment Agency of substantial incidents
All sections are available to download in PDF format below:
Arsine and Stibine - Full Document (PDF, 160 KB)- General Information (PDF, 46 KB)
- Incident Management (PDF, 70 KB)
- Toxicological Overview (PDF, 75 KB)