Acute toxicity and health effect of perfluoroisobutyronitrile on mice: a promising substitute gas-insulating medium to SF.

Perfluoroisobutyronitrile (CFN) is a new eco-friendly gas insulation medium that has potential to replace the most greenhouse gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF) used in power industry. In order to ensure the engineering application safety, an in-depth assessment of the acute inhalation toxicity of CFN gas mixture is required. This article revealed gender differences in male and female mice after exposure to CFN and the physiological recovery characteristics of surviving mice by means of 4 h acute inhalation toxicity tests, hematological determinations and histopathological examination. Comparative analysis on the toxicity of CFN on mice and rats is also evaluated. We find that the LC of CFN for male and female mice is 1175 ppm (4 h), 1380 ppm (4 h) and female ones are more tolerant to CFN. Mice that exposed to 1000 ppm CFN for 4 h could survive and return to their normal state after the 14-day observation period without irreversible damage. The toxic effect duration of CFN on rats is longer than that of mice. Relevant results revealed the acute inhalation toxicity of CFN systematically and provided fundamental reference for inhalation safety protection and engineering application.