Is Phenyl Mercuric Chloride safe in cosmetics?
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride has a safety rating of "POOR" in our database. EU status: prohibited. US status: prohibited.
Poor
Cosmetic Ingredient
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride
Also known as: Mercury, chlorophenyl-, Agrenal, Agronal, Benzene, (chloromercurio)-, BRN 3536717 (+15 more)
INCI: PHENYL MERCURIC CHLORIDE
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride (CAS 100-56-1) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Preservative (mercury-based). EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: prohibited. Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in industrial chemical safety data.
View industrial chemical safety profile for CAS 100-56-1 →
Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride is prohibited in EU cosmetics but has active industrial GHS classifications (H300, H310, H330, H373, H400, H410).
Source: Cosmetics: ingredients.eu_status; Chemicals: ghs_classifications.signal_word/hazard_statement_code
Function
Preservative (mercury-based)
Safety Rating
POOR
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
chloro(phenyl)mercury
InChIKey
AWGTVRDHKJQFAX-UHFFFAOYSA-M
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
prohibited
US US Status
prohibited
US Notes
Prohibited under 21 CFR 700.13
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Phenyl Mercuric Chloride.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (2)
Carcinogen Classification
No indication of carcinogenicity (not listed by IARC). (L135)
Source: Toxin and Toxin Target Database (T3DB)
Skin Eye Respiratory Irritation
Exposure of the skin to a concentrated solution of phenylmercury cmpd may cause chemical burns with blistering. /Phenylmercury cmpd/
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Preservative
Expert Verdict
Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for Phenyl Mercuric Chloride.
Regulatory Flags
preservative
Known Synonyms
Mercury, chlorophenyl-
Agrenal
Agronal
Benzene, (chloromercurio)-
BRN 3536717
Caswell No. 656E
(Chloromercuri)benzene
EINECS 202-865-1
EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 066007
Hexason
Mercuriphenyl chloride
Merfazin
Mersolite 2
Phenyl chloromercury
Stopspot
Monophenylmercury chloride
Chlorid fenylrtutnaty
Fenylmercurichlorid
Phenylquecksilberchlorid
UNII-X0R4ES0U7Z
Chemical Function
Preservative
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Phenyl Mercuric Chloride allowed in the EU?
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride EU regulatory status: prohibited. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Phenyl Mercuric Chloride do in cosmetics?
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride functions as: Preservative (mercury-based). It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 100-56-1.
Is Phenyl Mercuric Chloride used outside cosmetics?
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride also appears in industrial chemical safety data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.
Does Phenyl Mercuric Chloride have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
Phenyl Mercuric Chloride is prohibited in EU cosmetics but has active industrial GHS classifications (H300, H310, H330, H373, H400, H410).
Compliance Tools
Check Phenyl Mercuric Chloride compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
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82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
Check compliance across multiple jurisdictions
MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
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