Phosphate Ester Hydraulic Fluids: An Aquatic Environmental Assessment of Pydrauls 50E and 115E

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Abstract
Two phosphate ester hydraulic fluids, Pydrauls 50E and 115E, are used principally in industrial systems. A study by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency indicated that a significant portion of the annual production of all hydraulic fluid was discharged into the environment as a result of leakage. We studied the mobility, persistence, bioconcentration potential, acute and chronic toxicity, and environmental concentrations of Pydrauls 50E and 115E and their three main components: triphenyl phosphate, nonylphenyl diphenyl phosphate, and cumylphenyl diphenyl phosphate. Physicochemical properties and use-disposal patterns were also considered.Pydrauls 50E and 115E presently do not appear to constitute an unreasonable risk to the environment; however, inadvertent leakage of these materials to the aquatic environment should be avoided. Toxicity tests indicated that the margin of safety between environmental concentrations in water and the expected biological effect concentration is at least 1 order of magnitude for coldwater fish, and about 3 orders of magnitude for warm-water species. Better control of hydraulic fluid leakage would reduce environmental contamination and increase the margin of safety.

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