These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
A Guide to the Classification of Hazardous Chemicals Under the WHS Regulations
Answer sheet
Example 1 – pH Indicator
GHS Classification(s)
Acute toxicity – Oral: Category 3
Carcinogenicity: Category 2
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Skull and Crossbones
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Health hazard
H301 Toxic if swallowed
H351 Suspected of causing cancer
Example 2 – Disinfecting agent
GHS Classification(s)
Oxidising solids: Category 2
Acute toxicity – Oral: Category 4
Acute aquatic toxicity: Category 1
Chronic aquatic toxicity: Category 1
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Flame over circle
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Exclamation mark
Environment
H272 May intensify fire; oxidiser
H302 Harmful if swallowed
H400 Very toxic to aquatic life
H410 Very toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects
(or can combine H400 + H410 ≡ H410)
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright
These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
Example 3 – Plastics starting material
GHS Classification(s)
Carcinogenicity: Category 1B
Acute toxicity – Inhalation: Category 3
Acute toxicity – Dermal: Category 3
Acute toxicity – Oral: Category 3
Flammable liquids: Category 3
Skin corrosion: Category 1B
Skin sensitisation: Category 1
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Health hazard
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Skull and
crossbones
Flame
Corrosion
H350 May cause cancer
H301+H311+H331 Toxic if inhaled, in contact with skin and if
swallowed (or individually)
H226 Flammable liquid and vapour
H314 Causes severe skin burns and eye damage
H317 May cause an allergic skin reaction
Example 4 – Bulk supply of solvent
GHS Classification(s)
Flammable liquids: Category 2
Carcinogenicity: Category 1A
Germ cell mutagenicity: Category 1B
Specific target organ toxicity – Repeated Exposure: Category 1
Aspiration hazard: Category 1
Eye irritation: Category 2A
Skin irritation: Category 2
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Flame
Health hazard
Exclamation mark
DG Class 3
H225 Highly flammable liquid and vapour
H350 May cause cancer
H340 May cause genetic defects
H372 Causes damage to organs through prolonged or repeated
exposure
H304 May be fatal if swallowed and enters airways
H315 Causes skin irritation
H319 Causes serious eye irritation
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright
These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
Example 5 – Compressed gas
GHS Classification(s)
Gases under pressure: Compressed gas
Acute toxicity – Inhalation: Category 3
Skin corrosion: Category 1B
Acute aquatic toxicity: Category 1
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Gas cylinder
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Skull and
crossbones
Corrosion
Environment
H280 Contains gas under pressure; may explode if heated
H331 Toxic if inhaled
H314 Causes severe skin burns and eye damage
H400 Very toxic to aquatic life
Example 6 – Herbicide
GHS Classification(s)
Acute toxicity – Dermal: Cat. 2
Acute toxicity – Oral: Cat. 2
Reproductive toxicity: Cat. 1B
Acute aquatic toxicity: Cat. 1
Chronic aquatic toxicity: Cat. 1
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Health hazard
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Skull and crossbones
Environment
H300+H310 Fatal if swallowed or in contact with skin
H360 May damage the unborn child
H410 Very toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects
AUH044 Risk of explosion if heated under confinement
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright
These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
Example 7 – Alcohol:water cleaning solution
GHS Classification(s)
Flammable liquids: Category 2
Eye irritation: Category 2A
Specific target organ toxicity – Single Exposure: Category 3
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Flame
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
Exclamation mark
H225 Highly flammable liquid and vapour
H319 Causes serious eye irritation
H336 May cause drowsiness or dizziness
Example 8 – Insecticide preparation
The formulation as developed meant it was neither classified as a hazardous substance under the
Approved Criteria as the concentration of the active ingredient is below the cut-off level or as dangerous
goods under the ADG Code. The GHS classification for pyroglusinate can be easily determined. The other
ingredients are non-hazardous and do not add to the overall classification, so can be ignored for
classification purposes.
Classification of pyroglusinate (pure compound) is:
Acute toxicity – Inhalation, Oral, Dermal: Cat. 4 (Harmful if inhaled, in contact with the skin or if
swallowed).
STOT – RE: Cat. 2 (Causes damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure if swallowed or in
contact with the skin)
Reproductive toxicity: Category 1A (May damage fertility; May cause harm to the unborn child)
The final classification of the mixture is:
Acute toxicity: The level is below the relevant ingredients level of 1% and so mixture is not classifiable into
this classification.
Reproductive toxicity: Applying the relevant cut-off limit, the mixture is classified as Category 1A (≥ 0.3 %
for category 1)
Specific Target Organ Toxicity – Repeated Exposure: Applying the relevant cut-off limit, the mixture is not
classifiable as STOT – RE.
Overall GHS labelling elements
GHS Classification(s)
Reproductive toxicity: Category 1
Signal Word
DANGER
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright
These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
Pictogram(s)
Health hazard
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
H360 May damage fertility or the unborn child
Example 9 – Rust removing preparation
Issues:
Direct translation of risk phrases could result in incorrect classification. This is because the cut-off values
in the GHS for chemicals with a corrosive effect are significantly different from those chemicals classified
to the Approved Criteria. This would result in under-classification in this instance. Acid components are
not necessarily subjected to additivity principles when classifying.
How to obtain classification:
The classification of the mixture can be derived by considering the Approved Criteria classification of the
individual components (which have been given). These should be converted into their individual GHS
classification and the mixture classified appropriately using the cut-off concentrations to obtain an overall
classification.
Because the mixture itself has been classified as an environmental hazard, this classification can be
taken through to the final classification.
The surfactant is not classified as a hazardous substance. It can be assumed they are not relevant to the
overall classification for the purposes of this exercise.
Acid component 1:
The GHS classification is as given above
Acid component 2:
The GHS classification is as given above
Overall GHS classification:
Classify the more/most severe categories first – this can save time as it often means that lower categories
do not need to be considered.
Skin corrosion: According to cut-off concentrations, Acid component 2 will classify the mixture as Skin
corrosion: Category 1B (keep the 1B denotation). We can stop here for corrosive effects as this
category also includes serious eye damage. All skin corrosives are presumed to also cause serious eye
damage (unless you have data to prove otherwise). There is no need to classify the skin irritation effect of
acid component 1 because component 2 places it into the most severe category.
STOT – SE: The GHS suggests a cut-off limit of 20% for these effects. Acid component 2 is below this
level, therefore the mixture is not classified in this category.
Acute toxicity: Applying the ATE formula to the mixture, an estimated LC50 of 19 500 mg/kg is given. This
means the overall acute toxicity of the mixture is not classified.
Eye damage/irritation: According to the cut-off limits for Serious eye damage (see example 7), any eye
damage or skin corrosion category 1 ingredients equal to or over 3% is enough to classify a mixture as
Serious eye damage: Category 1.
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright
These Question and Answer Sheets are intended for use by Trainers with a working knowledge
of the GHS and older labelling and classification systems in Australia
The overall classification for the mixture is given in the table below.
GHS Classification(s)
Skin corrosion: Category 1B
(Serious eye damage: Category 1)
Acute aquatic toxicity: Category 3
Chronic aquatic toxicity: Category 3
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictogram(s)
Corrosion
Hazard statement(s)
(and codes)
H314 Causes severe skin burns and eye damage
H402 + H412 Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting effects
Release under by Safe Work Australia under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence.
You may redistribute and reuse this work without charge.
For full details see www.swa.gov.au/sites/swa/copyright