Toluene
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Description
Colorless liquid solvent with a Benzene odor. Toluene is produced from the fractional distillation of coal tar. It is used as a solvent for paint, coatings, resins, as well as for most oils, rubber, polymers, and adhesives. Toluene is also used as a component in aviation fuel and for the manufacture of dyestuffs and explosives. Industrial grade toluene has been called toluol.
Synonyms and Related Terms
toluol; methylbenzene; phenylmethane; methyl benzene
Risks
- Flammable. Flash point = 4C.
- Toxic by ingestion, inhalation and skin absorption.
- ThermoFisher: SDS
- EPA lists toluene as hazardous waste; concentrations over 10% must be disposed of appropriately
Physical and Chemical Properties
Soluble in ethanol, benzene, ether. Insoluble in water. Burns with a smoky flame.
| Composition | C6H5CH3 |
|---|---|
| CAS | 108-88-3 |
| Melting Point | -94.7 C |
| Density | 0.866 g/ml |
| Molecular Weight | mol. wt.=92.13 |
| Refractive Index | 1.4967 |
| Boiling Point | 110.7 C |
Comparisons
Resources and Citations
- R. J. Gettens, G.L. Stout, Painting Materials, A Short Encyclopaedia, Dover Publications, New York, 1966
- Reed Kay, The Painter's Guide To Studio Methods and Materials, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1983
- Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993
- Matt Roberts, Don Etherington, Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: a Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC, 1982
- Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
- The Merck Index, Martha Windholz (ed.), Merck Research Labs, Rahway NJ, 10th edition, 1983 Comment: entry 9667; ref. index=1.4967
- The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998
- CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Robert Weast (ed.), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, v. 61, 1980 Comment: ref. index=1.494