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urea
** carbamide ** Translations

Environmental Fate - Ecotoxicology - Human Health - A to Z Index - Home

GENERAL INFORMATION
for urea

Description: Normally thought of as a nitrogen fertiliser, however, it is also used to control the olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae and the wood-rotting pathogenic fungus Heterobasidion annosum.

Introduction: 1773, discovered

EC Regulation 1107/2009 (repealing 91/414):
Status Approved
Dossier rapporteur/co-rapporteur Greece
Date inclusion expires 31/08/2019

Approved for use () or known to be used () in the following European countries:

AT

BE

BG

CY

CZ

DE

DK

EE

EL

ES

FI

FR

HU

IE

IT

LT

LU

LV

MT

NL

PL

PT

RO

SE

SI

SK

UK

General status:
Pesticide type Fungicide, Insecticide, Microbiocide, Wood preservative
Other constituent type Fertiliser, Wood preservative
Substance group Inorganic compound
Substance origin Synthetic
Mode of action Unclear but thought to be related to elevation in pH and ammonia levels as urea degrades
CAS RN 57-13-6
EC number 200-315-5
CIPAC number 913
US EPA chemical code 085702
Chiral molecule No
Chemical formula CH4N2O
SMILES C(N)(N)=O
International Chemical Identifier key (InChIKey) XSQUKJJJFZCRTK-UHFFFAOYSA-N
International Chemical Identifier (InChI) InChI=1S/CH4N2O/c2-1(3)4/h(H4,2,3,4)
Structure diagram/image available? Yes
Molecular mass (g mol-1) 60.06
PIN (Preferred Identification Name) -
IUPAC name urea
CAS name urea
Other status information -
Herbicide Resistance Classification (HRAC) Not applicable
Herbicide Resistance Classification (WSSA) Not applicable
Insecticide Resistance Classification (IRAC) None
Fungicide Resistance Classification (FRAC) None
Physical state White solid with ammoniacal odour
Related substances & organisms

Formulations:
Property Value
Example manufacturers & suppliers of products using this active
  • BASF
  • Dalgety Agriculture Ltd
  • Hydro Agri
Example products using this active -
UK LERAP status No UK approval for use or outside scope
Formulation and application details -


ENVIRONMENTAL FATE
for urea

Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
Solubility - In water at 20oC (mg l-1) 590000 F4 High
Solubility - In organic solvents at 20oC (mg l-1) - - -
Melting point (oC) 134 O3 -
Boiling point (oC) Decomposes before boiling F4 -
Degradation point (oC) - - -
Flashpoint (oC) 73 O2 -
Octanol-water partition coefficient at pH 7, 20oC P 2.57 X 10-03 Calculated -
Log P -2.59 F4 Low
Bulk density (g ml-1)/Specific gravity 1.32 Q3 -
Dissociation constant (pKa) at 25oC 13.90 Da - a as Pkb -
Note: Q3
Vapour pressure at 25oC (mPa) - - -
Henry's law constant at 25oC (Pa m3 mol-1) - - -
Henry's law constant at 20oC (dimensionless) - - -
GUS leaching potential index - - -
SCI-GROW groundwater index (μg l-1) for a 1 kg ha-1 or 1 l ha-1 application rate Value - - -
Note -
Potential for particle bound transport index - - -
Maximum UV-vis absorption L mol-1 cm-1 - - -
Surface tension (mN m-1) - - -

Degradation:
Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
Soil degradation (days) (aerobic) DT50 (typical) - - -
DT50 (lab at 20oC) - - -
DT50 (field) - - -
DT90 (lab at 20oC) - - -
DT90 (field) - - -
Note Soil nutrient - main mode of degradation is via enzymatic mineralisation
Aqueous photolysis DT50 (days) at pH 7 Value - - -
Note -
Aqueous hydrolysis DT50 (days) at 20oC and pH 7 Value - - -
Note -
Water-sediment DT50 (days) - - -
Water phase only DT50 (days) - - -

Soil adsorption and mobility:
Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
Linear Kd - F4 Very mobile
Koc 14
Notes and range In high peat soils Koc ~ 0.79 mL/g
Freundlich Kf - - -
Kfoc -
1/n -
Notes and range -
pH sensitivity No but adsorption increases with organic carbon


ECOTOXICOLOGY
for urea

Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
Bio-concentration factor BCF Low risk Q3 Based on LogP < 3 High potential
CT50 (days) - -
Bioaccumulation potential - Calculated Low
Mammals - Acute oral LD50 (mg kg-1) > 8471 F4 Rat Low
Mammals - Short term dietary NOEL (mg kg-1) - - -
(ppm diet) - -
Birds - Acute LD50 (mg kg-1) - - -
Birds - Short term dietary (LC50/LD50) - - -
Fish - Acute 96 hour LC50 (mg l-1) > 17500 O3 Poecilia reticulata Low
Fish - Chronic 21 day NOEC (mg l-1) - - -
Aquatic invertebrates - Acute 48 hour EC50 (mg l-1) > 10000 O3 Daphnia magna Low
Aquatic invertebrates - Chronic 21 day NOEC (mg l-1) - - -
Aquatic crustaceans - Acute 96 hour LC50 (mg l-1) - - -
Sediment dwelling organisms - Acute 96 hour LC50 (mg l-1) - - -
Sediment dwelling organisms - Chronic 28 day NOEC, static, water (mg l-1) - - -
Sediment dwelling organisms - Chronic 28 day NOEC, sediment (mg kg-1) - - -
Aquatic plants - Acute 7 day EC50, biomass (mg l-1) - - -
Algae - Acute 72 hour EC50, growth (mg l-1) 10.7 J3 Unknown species Low
Algae - Chronic 96 hour NOEC, growth (mg l-1) - - -
Honeybees Contact acute 48 hour LD50 (μg bee-1) - - -
Oral acute 48 hour LD50 (μg bee-1) - - -
Unknown mode acute 48 hour LD50 (μg bee-1) - - -
Earthworms - Acute 14 day LC50 (mg kg-1) - - -
Earthworms - Chronic 14 day NOEC, reproduction (mg kg-1) - - -
Other soil macro-organisms - e.g. Collembola LR50 / EC50 / NOEC / % Effect - - -
Other arthropod (1) LR50 g ha-1 - - -
% Effect - - -
Other arthropod (2) LR50 g ha-1 - - -
% Effect - - -
Soil micro-organisms - - -
Mesocosm study data NOEAEC mg l-1 - - -
NOEAEC mg l-1 - - -


HUMAN HEALTH AND PROTECTION
for urea

General:
Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
Mammals - Acute oral LD50 (mg kg-1) > 8471 F4 Rat Low
Mammals - Dermal LD50 (mg kg-1 body weight) > 8200 O3 Rat -
Mammals - Inhalation LC50 (mg l-1) 0.022 F3 (Dust exposure) -
Other Mammal toxicity endpoints - -
ADI - Acceptable Daily Intake (mg kg-1bw day-1) - - -
ARfD - Acute Reference Dose (mg kg-1bw day-1) - - -
AOEL - Acceptable Operator Exposure Level - Systemic (mg kg-1bw day-1) - - -
Dermal penetration studies (%) - - -
Dangerous Substances Directive 76/464 - - -
Exposure Limits - - -
Exposure Routes Public -
Occupational -
Examples of European MRLs (mg kg-1) Value -
Note For the EU pesticides database click here
Drinking Water MAC (μg l-1) - - -

Health issues:
Carcinogen Mutagen Endocrine disrupter Reproduction / development effects Cholinesterase inhibitor Neurotoxicant Respiratory tract irritant Skin irritant Eye irritant

-

-

General human health issues May cause gastrointestinal irritation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
May cause cardiac disturbances

: Yes, known to cause a problem
: No, known not to cause a problem
: Possibly, status not identified
- : No data

Handling issues:
Property Value Source/Quality Score/Other Information Interpretation
General May form explosive products with chlorinating substances
CLP classification 2013 -
EC Risk Classification Carcinogen category 3: R40
Xi- Irritant: 36/37/38
EC Safety Classification S24/25, S26, S36
WHO Classification NL - Not listed
US EPA Classification (formulation) - -
UN Number -
Waste disposal & packaging -


TRANSLATIONS
for urea

Language Name
English urea
French -
German -
Danish -
Italian -
Spanish -
Greek -
Slovenian -
Polish -
Swedish -
Hungarian -
Dutch -

Record last updated: Thursday 20 November 2014
Contact: aeru@herts.ac.uk