Interpretation Response #16-0150 ([Entegris] [Mr. John Gaudreau])
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: Entegris
Individual Name: Mr. John Gaudreau
Location State: MA Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
April 18, 2017
Mr. John Gaudreau
Entegris
10 Forge Park
Franklin, MA 02038
Reference No. 16-0150
Dear Mr. Gaudreau:
This letter is in response to your September 9, 2016, email requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to the proper hazard classification of a product that you manufacture. You describe the product as being a pleated air filter that contains chemically treated carbon granules that are suspended in a non-woven polymer fiber. In your email, you note that tests conducted in accordance with the United Nations (UN) Manual of Tests and Criteria show that the polymer fiber qualifies for exemption from the HMR if it is transported in packages of not more than 450-liter volume. The chemically treated carbon granule embedded in the filter, however, was assigned to "UN3088, Self-heating solid, organic, n.o.s., 4.2, PG II."
We have paraphrased and answered your questions as follows:
Q1. You ask for confirmation of your understanding that the product as described is not subject to the requirements of the HMR because the Division 4.2 hazard posed by the carbon granules is negated in the product's final form.
A1. In accordance with § 173.22 of the HMR, it is the shipper's responsibility to properly classify a hazardous material. This Office generally does not perform this function. However, you may rely on results from tests performed on the product in the form in which it will be offered for transportation rather than the hazard determination for individual components of the product.
Q2. You ask for confirmation of your understanding that nothing prohibits the use of an overpack of the item you described when contained in packages of 450 liters or less.
A2. Your understanding is correct for the purposes of the HMR. The use of the term "overpack" is associated with shipping a hazardous material. If the shipment is not a hazardous material, it is not subject to the HMR and the method of package consolidation is left to the shipper's discretion.
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Dirk Der Kinderen
Chief, Standards Development Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
173.22
Regulation Sections
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| 173.22 | Shipper's responsibility |