A material safety data sheet (MSDS), safety data sheet (SDS) or product safety
data sheet (PSDS) is an important component of product stewardship and occupational
safety and health. It is intended to provide workers and emergency personnel with
procedures for handling or working with that substance in a safe manner, and includes
information such as physical data (melting point, boiling point, flash point, etc.),
toxicity, health effects, first aid, reactivity, storage, disposal, protective equipment,
and spill-handling procedures. MSDS formats can vary from source to source within
a country depending on national requirements.
The US-based National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has a standard NFPA 704 using a diamond with four colored sections each with a number
indicating severity 0—4 (0 for no hazard, 4 indicates a severe hazard). The red section
denotes flammability. The blue section denotes health risks. Yellow represents reactivity
(tendency to explode). The white section denotes special hazard information. One example
of a special hazard would be the capital letter W crossed out (pictured left) indicating
it is water reactant. This label is used primarily in the US.
