Body & Beauty / Compounds / Cyclohexane

Cyclohexane on your skin: a safety profile

Low risk

Skin contact with liquid cyclohexane causes defatting irritant dermatitis with repeated exposure; dermal absorption contributes to total body cyclohexane burden but is a secondary exposure route compared to inhalation. Defatting mechanism: cyclohexane, as a nonpolar solvent, dissolves epidermal lipids on contact — repeated skin exposure causes dry, scaling, erythematous skin (defatting dermatitis); single brief contact produces minimal irritation. Dermal absorption: cyclohexane penetrates intact skin, but NIOSH does not assign a skin notation — dermal uptake is insufficient to represent a significant contribution to systemic exposure in typical occupational scenarios. Comparative dermal hazard: cyclohexane is considerably less dermally hazardous than aromatic ring solvents (benzene, toluene) and chlorinated solvents at equivalent contact — it causes simple physical defatting without the aromatic ring metabolites (epoxides, quinones) that underlie the carcinogenicity of benzene or specific toxicity of chlorinated solvents. Rubber and adhesive use: cyclohexane-containing contact adhesives and rubber cements involve brush or spray application — hand contact during use causes brief dermal exposure; standard solvent-handling gloves (nitrile) provide adequate protection. Environmental fate: cyclohexane biodegrades in soil and water via ring-opening hydroxylation; atmospheric cyclohexane contributes to tropospheric ozone formation as a VOC.

What is cyclohexane?

Also known as: Hexamethylene, Hexahydrobenzene, Hexanaphthene, Cyclohexan.

IUPAC name
cyclohexane
CAS number
110-82-7
Molecular formula
C6H12
Molecular weight
84.16 g/mol
SMILES
C1CCCCC1
PubChem CID
8078

Risk for people

Low risk

Skin contact with liquid cyclohexane causes defatting irritant dermatitis with repeated exposure; dermal absorption contributes to total body cyclohexane burden but is a secondary exposure route compared to inhalation. Defatting mechanism: cyclohexane, as a nonpolar solvent, dissolves epidermal lipids on contact — repeated skin exposure causes dry, scaling, erythematous skin (defatting dermatitis); single brief contact produces minimal irritation. Dermal absorption: cyclohexane penetrates intact skin, but NIOSH does not assign a skin notation — dermal uptake is insufficient to represent a significant contribution to systemic exposure in typical occupational scenarios. Comparative dermal hazard: cyclohexane is considerably less dermally hazardous than aromatic ring solvents (benzene, toluene) and chlorinated solvents at equivalent contact — it causes simple physical defatting without the aromatic ring metabolites (epoxides, quinones) that underlie the carcinogenicity of benzene or specific toxicity of chlorinated solvents. Rubber and adhesive use: cyclohexane-containing contact adhesives and rubber cements involve brush or spray application — hand contact during use causes brief dermal exposure; standard solvent-handling gloves (nitrile) provide adequate protection. Environmental fate: cyclohexane biodegrades in soil and water via ring-opening hydroxylation; atmospheric cyclohexane contributes to tropospheric ozone formation as a VOC.

Regulatory consensus

4 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Cyclohexane. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
OSHA—Occupational exposure limit
EPA CTX / IRIS—Data are inadequate for an assessment of human carcinogenic potential
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 4 positive / 6 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 4 positive / 6 negative reports)

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where you encounter cyclohexane

  • Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
  • Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles
  • Fragrance — perfume, cologne, scented personal care products, household fragrance products, candles
    Identified in Fragrance Ingredient Safety Priority Research database (2,325 ingredients)

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Cyclohexane:

  • Fragrance-free formulations
    Trade-offs: Consumer preference for scented products
    Relative cost: Lower (ingredient elimination)
  • Essential oil-based fragrances (with disclosure)
    Trade-offs: Natural does not mean safe — many essential oils are skin sensitizers
    Relative cost: 2-5× conventional

Frequently asked questions

Is cyclohexane safe for you?

Skin contact with liquid cyclohexane causes defatting irritant dermatitis with repeated exposure; dermal absorption contributes to total body cyclohexane burden but is a secondary exposure route compared to inhalation. Defatting mechanism: cyclohexane, as a nonpolar solvent, dissolves epidermal lipids on contact — repeated skin exposure causes dry, scaling, erythematous skin (defatting dermatitis); single brief contact produces minimal irritation. Dermal absorption: cyclohexane penetrates intact skin, but NIOSH does not assign a skin notation — dermal uptake is insufficient to represent a significant contribution to systemic exposure in typical occupational scenarios. Comparative dermal hazard: cyclohexane is considerably less dermally hazardous than aromatic ring solvents (benzene, toluene) and chlorinated solvents at equivalent contact — it causes simple physical defatting without the aromatic ring metabolites (epoxides, quinones) that underlie the carcinogenicity of benzene or specific toxicity of chlorinated solvents. Rubber and adhesive use: cyclohexane-containing contact adhesives and rubber cements involve brush or spray application — hand contact during use causes brief dermal exposure; standard solvent-handling gloves (nitrile) provide adequate protection. Environmental fate: cyclohexane biodegrades in soil and water via ring-opening hydroxylation; atmospheric cyclohexane contributes to tropospheric ozone formation as a VOC.

What products contain cyclohexane?

Cyclohexane appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments); perfume (Fragrance).

Why do regulators disagree about cyclohexane?

Cyclohexane has been classified by 4 agencies including OSHA, EPA CTX / IRIS, EPA CTX / Genetox, EPA CTX / Genetox, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See Cyclohexane in the body app

Look up products containing cyclohexane, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in body View raw API data

Sources (2)
  1. NIOSH Pocket Guide: Cyclohexane — IDLH 1300 ppm; PEL 300 ppm; CNS narcosis; no neuropathy unlike n-hexane; cyclohexanol biomarker; nylon feedstock; LEL 1.3% flammability priority (2019) (2019) — regulatory
  2. OSHA: Cyclohexane — adipic acid/nylon production; TLV 100 ppm; n-hexane neuropathy distinction; polymer/rubber solvent; flammability controls; CYP2E1 hydroxylation metabolism (2020) (2020) — regulatory

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →