What is the tonnage threshold for REACH on adipic acid (hexanedioic acid)?

Registration required for any importer or manufacturer placing >1 t/year on the EU market

CAS 124-04-9 · REACH · European Union

Adipic acid (hexanedioic acid) under REACH

C6H10O4 · 己二酸

Status: Registered. Adipic acid is fully registered under REACH at the highest tonnage band (>1,000,000 tonnes/year). **Distinguishing pattern: nylon 6,6 primary downstream chain (~85% of demand combined with HMDA hexamethylenediamine; sister to caprolactam batch 14 nylon 6 chain) + cyclohexane oxidation (to KA oil) followed by nitric acid batch 40 oxidation production route (~95% globally) + N2O greenhouse-gas emissions from production are subject to EU ETS coverage + light occupational hazard (Skin Irrit. 2 plus Eye Irrit. 2 plus STOT SE 3 only) + dual food-additive E 355 plus polyurethane plasticiser (DOA / DEHA) plus powder-coating cross-uses (NEW combined).** Reg (EC) 1272/2008 harmonised: Skin Irrit. 2 (H315) plus Eye Irrit. 2 (H319) plus STOT SE 3 (H335). NOT SVHC. NOT Annex XIV. NOT a drug or explosives precursor. NO active EU AD case on Chinese-origin adipic acid currently (verify against EUR-Lex https://eur-lex.europa.eu/ before invoicing).

Adipic acid is fully REACH-registered with **light hazard profile** (Skin Irrit. 2 plus Eye Irrit. 2 plus STOT SE 3 only). NOT SVHC, NOT Annex XIV, NOT a drug or explosives precursor, NOT in CBAM Phase 1. The dominant practitioner-facing trade-policy concern is upstream-producer N2O emissions exposure under EU ETS (does not flow through to monomer trade pricing directly). NO active EU AD case currently. Major Chinese producers: Pingmei Shenma, Liaoning Hualu, Hongbai Group, Hualu-Hengsheng, Hubei Yihua. End-use dominated by nylon 6,6 (~70 percent of demand combined with HMDA hexamethylenediamine) plus polyester polyol for polyurethane (~10 percent) plus plasticisers DOA / DEHA (~5 percent) plus food acidulant E 355 (~5 percent) plus powder coatings (~10 percent). Production: cyclohexane plus nitric acid batch 40 two-step oxidation (~95 percent globally).

Listing and threshold

Substance	Adipic acid (hexanedioic acid) (CAS 124-04-9), C6H10O4
Regime	EU Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006: Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals
Jurisdiction	European Union (EU-27 plus EEA: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway)
Status	Registered
Tonnage threshold	Registration required for any importer or manufacturer placing >1 t/year on the EU market

Classifications under this regime

Harmonised CLP classification: Skin Irrit. 2 (H315), Eye Irrit. 2 (H319), STOT SE 3 (H335)
Signal word: WARNING
GHS pictograms: GHS07 (exclamation mark)
IARC: not classified
NOT subject to Drug Precursors or Explosives Precursors scheduling
ADR / RID transport classification: not regulated as DG (solid; non-DG)
EU food additive E 355 permitted under Reg (EC) 1333/2008 as acidity regulator in specific food categories (verify the current Annex II permitted-use list against EUR-Lex https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2008/1333/oj before relying)
EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS): adipic-acid manufacturing plants are covered installations for N2O emissions per Annex I of Directive 2003/87/EC as amended (verify current ETS coverage and benchmark allowance against https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/eu-emissions-trading-system-eu-ets_en before relying)

Restrictions and conditions of use

NOT on REACH Annex XIV (Authorisation list); verify against ECHA https://echa.europa.eu/authorisation-list
NOT classified as SVHC (verify against ECHA https://echa.europa.eu/candidate-list-table)
NOT subject to any Annex XVII restriction at industrial-grade level
NO active EU AD case on Chinese-origin adipic acid currently (verify against EUR-Lex https://eur-lex.europa.eu/ before invoicing; periodic petitions filed by EU producers but no current definitive AD orders confirmed)
NOT in CBAM Phase 1 scope (CBAM Phase 1 is restricted to cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, electricity, hydrogen per Reg (EU) 2023/956); potential Phase 2 candidate post-2026 review
EU ETS N2O emissions allowance management for adipic-acid producers

Importer obligations

A non-EU producer cannot register directly under REACH. The EU importer of record must hold a registration or rely on an Only Representative (OR). Light occupational hazard profile means no specific workplace surveillance program is triggered; standard SDS plus CLP labelling pack is sufficient. Major Chinese producers (Pingmei Shenma plus Liaoning Hualu plus Hongbai Group plus Hualu-Hengsheng plus Hubei Yihua) compete with EU producers (BASF Ludwigshafen plus Lanxess Antwerp plus Radici Group Italy plus Solvay) and US producers (Invista plus Ascend Performance Materials plus Solutia / Eastman) (verify each company-site pair against the producer's public website before relying on a specific plant).

Required documents

REACH registration number on the EU side (registrant or OR-appointed)
Safety Data Sheet (SDS) compliant with REACH Annex II in destination Member State language(s) reflecting H315 / H319 / H335 classification
CLP-compliant labelling with GHS07 pictogram and WARNING signal word
Customs entry with HS code 291712 (adipic acid)
EU ETS allowance documentation for upstream producer plants (covered by producer; relevant where importer obtains adipic acid from EU producer)
Reg 1333/2008 conformity declaration for food-grade lots

Common compliance traps

The pitfalls that have bitten importers on this lane in the past. None of these is theoretical.

**Light hazard profile**: NOT SVHC, NOT Annex XIV, NOT a drug or explosives precursor, NOT in CBAM Phase 1
Production: cyclohexane oxidation to KA oil (cyclohexanone plus cyclohexanol), then nitric acid batch 40 oxidation to adipic acid; ~95 percent globally (verify against ICIS or S&P Commodity Insights before quoting a specific share)
**N2O emissions** from adipic-acid plants are a significant greenhouse-gas concern; modern plants use catalytic abatement, EU ETS pricing applies. Older plants without abatement carry materially higher Scope 1 footprint
NO active EU AD case on Chinese adipic acid currently (verify against access.trade.gov plus EUR-Lex)
Major Chinese producers: Pingmei Shenma (Henan), Liaoning Hualu (Liaoning), Hongbai Group (Shandong), Hualu-Hengsheng (Shandong), Hubei Yihua (Hubei) (verify the most recent producer-site list and capacity against ICIS or S&P Commodity Insights before quoting a specific Mt/yr figure or world-largest rank); China dominates global capacity (verify percent-of-global share before quoting; prior industry reports cited ~60 percent at ~6 Mt/yr)
End-use mix: nylon 6,6 polymer combined with HMDA (~70 percent), polyester polyols for polyurethane (~10 percent), plasticisers (DOA, DEHA, ~5 percent), food acidulant E 355 (~5 percent), powder coatings plus other (~10 percent) (verify exact split against ICIS or end-use industry surveys before quoting)
EU food-additive E 355 permitted in specific categories under Reg (EC) 1333/2008

Where to read next

For substance-level identifiers (formula, molecular weight, SMILES, InChIKey), GHS hazard profile, IMDG transport class, and full sourcing reference for adipic acid (hexanedioic acid), see the CAS 124-04-9 sourcing reference.

For grade-by-grade buying notes, freight maths, supplier-tier pricing, and a worked landed-cost example, the adipic acid (hexanedioic acid) cornerstone hub covers the full sourcing chain.

For the structure and history of REACH, see the REACH glossary entry.

Need cross-jurisdiction compliance support on this substance? Run it through the REACH / TSCA / IECSC / AICIS / K-REACH checker, or send us the substance and the destination and we will quote FOB China and CIF / DDP landed including the regulatory work on the destination side.

Cross-jurisdiction profile and sourcing references

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