Toluene

Formula: C₇H₈ | CAS: 108-88-3

Detecting toluene: Toluene is the raw material for a range of other aromatic chemicals such as benzaldehyde, benzoic acid and dyes. It is a thinner for paints and lacquers, inks, perfumes and dyes.

Detecting toluene, a member of the BTEX family

The Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) benzene (B), toluene (T), ethylbenzene (E), and the isomers of xylene (X) also known as BTEX are important industrial solvents which frequently become industrial contaminants. These VOCs, used in gasoline, printing industry, leather industries, and rubber manufacture, produce a large amount of contaminated wastewater that is discharged into the aqueous environment.

Protecting both people and the environment whilst meeting the operational needs of your business is a very important role and, if you have operations in the UK you will be well aware of the requirements of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (CoSHH) Regulations and likewise the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) in the US. Similar legislation exists worldwide, the common theme being an onus on hazard identification, risk assessment and the provision of
appropriate control measures (bearing in mind the hierarchy of controls) as well as health surveillance in some cases.

Toluene is the common name for methylbenzene, a commercially important intermediate chemical produced throughout the world in enormous quantities. The general population is exposed to toluene mainly through inhalation of vapour in ambient air or from cigarette smoke. Apart from risks associated with occupational exposure, toluene poses special hazards to glue-sniffers, who intentionally abuse solvent mixtures containing this chemical.
– World Health Organisation (IRIS)

How to detect toluene in the environment

The most likely source of BTEX pollution in the environment according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is due to leakage from underground gasoline storage tanks into ground water, leaching from landfills, and discharge from factories and refineries.

The presence of toluene in the environment does not always lead to exposure. In order for it to cause any adverse health effects, you must come into contact with it. You may be exposed by breathing, eating, or drinking the substance or by skin contact. Following exposure to any chemical, the adverse health effects that you may encounter depend on several factors, including the amount to which you are exposed (dose), the way you are exposed, the duration of exposure, the form of the chemical and if you were exposed to any other chemicals.