Halogenated Organic Solvents

A halogenated solvent contains halogen atoms. Halogen atoms include the following elements:

• Bromine
• Chlorine
• Fluorine
• Iodine

You will see compounds classified as halogenated or non-halogenated. This distinction is important because some organic solvents can be combined with each other for disposal, but it is dangerous to combine solvents from both classes.

Halogenated waste is any organic compound that contains the elements fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine. The chemical name of a halogenated substance will include F (fluorine), Cl (chlorine), Br (bromine), or I (iodine).

Here are some examples of halogenated substances and the element each contains:

• Chloroform (contains Cl)
• Benzalkonium chloride (contains Cl)
• Bromophenol blue (contains Br)
• Crystal violet (contains Cl)
• Eosin (contains Br)
• Methylene chloride (contains Cl)
• Methylene blue (contains Cl)
• Safranin (contains Cl)

Halogenated compounds can also be called halocarbons (halogenated hydrocarbons), chlorocarbons, and chlorofluorocarbons (or CFCs, which is a class of molecules that contain chlorine, fluorine, and carbon).

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