ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the application, chemical properties and physical properties of benzene. It presents detailed information on the air analysis and analysis of aqueous and nonaqueous samples of benzene. Benzene occurs in gasoline and coal-tar distillation products, and is used as a solvent in organic synthesis. It is soluble in water, readily miscible with organic solvents, toxic, carcinogenic, flammable and colorless liquid with characteristic odor. During the analysis of aqueous and nonaqueous samples of benzene, a measured volume of sample is purged with helium in a purging vessel. Benzene collected on the sorbent trap is thermally desorbed from the trap and swept by an inert gas onto a gas chromatography (GC) column for separation from other volatile compounds and detected by photoionization detector (PID), flame ionization detector (FID), or a mass spectrometer (MS). During the air analysis of benzene, air is drawn through a sorbent tube containing coconut shell charcoal. Alternatively, air is also drawn through a cartridge containing Tenax.
