Corrosion (GHS05)
Corrosion (GHS05)
Causes severe skin burns and eye damage, or corrodes metal.
What it looks like
Two test tubes pouring liquid, one onto a hand and one onto a bar of metal, both being eaten away.
What it means
Drain cleaner, oven cleaner, descaler, strong bleach and battery acid. The important distinction from the exclamation-mark pictogram is depth and irreversibility: corrosive means tissue is destroyed rather than irritated, and eye contact can mean permanent damage in seconds. Rinse for a sustained period — the guidance for eyes is at least fifteen minutes of running water — and do not try to neutralise an alkali with an acid or the reverse, because the reaction generates heat in the wound.
Defined by UN GHS / EU CLP / OSHA HazCom. Where a symbol differs between standards, the difference is described above rather than resolved — both versions are in circulation on real labels.
Other hazard warnings symbols
| Symbol | Means |
|---|---|
| Exploding bomb (GHS01) | Explosive, self-reactive, or an organic peroxide that can explode. |
| Flame (GHS02) | Flammable — or a substance that heats up, ignites in air, or gives off flammable gas when wet. |
| Flame over circle (GHS03) | Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with. |
| Gas cylinder (GHS04) | Gas under pressure — compressed, liquefied, refrigerated or dissolved. |
| Skull and crossbones (GHS06) | Acute toxicity — fatal or toxic in small amounts by swallowing, skin contact or inhalation. |
| Exclamation mark (GHS07) | Irritant, skin sensitiser, harmful if swallowed or inhaled, or may cause drowsiness — the lower-severity hazards. |
| Health hazard (GHS08) | Serious long-term health effects — cancer, genetic damage, harm to fertility or the unborn child, organ damage, asthma from inhalation, or fatal if swallowed and it enters the airways. |
| Environment (GHS09) | Hazardous to the aquatic environment — toxic to fish and other water life. |
| Orange explosive (E) | Explosive, under the old European system. |
| Orange oxidising (O) | Oxidising agent, under the old European system. |
| Orange flammable (F, F+) | Highly flammable (F) or extremely flammable (F+), under the old European system. |
| Orange toxic (T, T+) | Toxic (T) or very toxic (T+), under the old European system. |
| Orange harmful or irritant (Xn, Xi) | Harmful (Xn) or irritant (Xi), under the old European system. |
| Orange corrosive (C) | Corrosive, under the old European system. |
| Orange dangerous for the environment (N) | Dangerous for the environment, under the old European system. |
| NFPA 704 fire diamond | A US placard telling emergency responders how a stored chemical behaves in a fire. |
| Biohazard | Biological material that can cause disease — blood, cultures, clinical waste. |
| Radiation trefoil | Ionising radiation — a radioactive source or a device producing radiation. |
| Laser radiation | Laser radiation — do not look into the beam. |
Common questions
- What does the corrosion (ghs05) symbol mean?
- Causes severe skin burns and eye damage, or corrodes metal.
- What does it look like?
- Two test tubes pouring liquid, one onto a hand and one onto a bar of metal, both being eaten away.
Related pages
- Exclamation mark (GHS07) Irritant, skin sensitiser, harmful if swallowed or inhaled, or may cause drowsiness — the lower-severity hazards.
- Skull and crossbones (GHS06) Acute toxicity — fatal or toxic in small amounts by swallowing, skin contact or inhalation.
- Orange corrosive (C) Corrosive, under the old European system.
- Exploding bomb (GHS01) Explosive, self-reactive, or an organic peroxide that can explode.
- Flame (GHS02) Flammable — or a substance that heats up, ignites in air, or gives off flammable gas when wet.
- Flame over circle (GHS03) Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with.
- Gas cylinder (GHS04) Gas under pressure — compressed, liquefied, refrigerated or dissolved.
- Skull and crossbones (GHS06) Acute toxicity — fatal or toxic in small amounts by swallowing, skin contact or inhalation.
- Exclamation mark (GHS07) Irritant, skin sensitiser, harmful if swallowed or inhaled, or may cause drowsiness — the lower-severity hazards.
- Health hazard (GHS08) Serious long-term health effects — cancer, genetic damage, harm to fertility or the unborn child, organ damage, asthma from inhalation, or fatal if swallowed and it enters the airways.
- Environment (GHS09) Hazardous to the aquatic environment — toxic to fish and other water life.
- Orange explosive (E) Explosive, under the old European system.
- Orange oxidising (O) Oxidising agent, under the old European system.
Sources
- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place