Toluene
108-88-3 · 22904-44-5 · 1-Methylbenzene · 2-methyl benzene · 2-methylbenzene · 3FPU23BG52 · 4-methyl-benzene · 4-methylbenzene · antisal 1a · Benzene, methyl · Benzene, methyl- · Benzyl Alcohol Impurity 8 · CAS-108-88-3 · Caswell No. 859 · CCRIS 2366 · Dracyl · EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 080601 · HSDB 131 · MePh · methacide · Methane, phenyl- · methyl benzene · Methyl benzol · methyl-Benzene · methylbenzene · Methylbenzene anhydrous · Methylbenzene, 9CI · methylbenzol · monomethyl benzene · o-Cresol a-D-Glucuronide · p-toluene · para-toluene · PhCH3 · phenyl methane · phenyl-methane · Phenylmethane · RCRA waste no. U220 · RCRA waste number U220 · tolu-sol · Tolueen · Toluen · Toluene · Toluene (Methyl-13C, 99%) · Toluene 1000 microg/mL in Methanol · Toluene ACS Grade · Toluene HPLC grade · toluene solvent · Toluene, 99.5% · Toluene, ACS reagent · Toluene, ACS reagent, >=99.5% · Toluene, analytical standard · Toluene, anhydrous · Toluene, for HPLC · toluene- · TOLUENE- D8 · Toluene-13C · TOLUENE-3,5-D2 · Tolueno · Toluol · ToluoloCAS 108-88-3
Listed as a solvent by the US.
Listed as solvents and vehicles (US)
- United States: Solvent or vehicle — FDA, Substances Added to Food: toluene
Toluene is an aromatic hydrocarbon specified by JECFA as an extraction solvent.
Where it is and isn’t permitted
| Jurisdiction | Status | Scope and limits | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia and New Zealand | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Canada | No listing matchedHealth Canada’s lists name additives without E or INS numbers, so this site matches them by exact name. A substance listed there under a name this site does not recognise has no row here. | ||
| European Union | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Great Britain | No listed food uses foundThis site has not matched this substance to any food use on this jurisdiction’s list of authorised food additives. A food additive may be used only in foods that list names. Flavourings, enzymes, processing aids and added nutrients are regulated separately and do not appear on it. | ||
| Japan | No listing matchedThis site imports only Japan’s list of designated additives (Appended Table 1 to the Regulations for Enforcement of the Food Sanitation Act), matched by English name. Existing additives, natural flavouring agents and ordinary foods used as additives are permitted outside that list and are not imported, so an empty row does not show that Japan does not permit the substance. | ||
| South Korea | No listing matchedThis site imports Part III of South Korea’s Standards and Specifications for Food Additives, matched by CAS number, then INS number, then exact name. Mixed preparations and sanitisers are not imported, and an entry whose identifiers disagreed with a page’s is held for review, so an empty row does not show that South Korea does not permit the substance. | ||
| United States | Not listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited. | ||
| Codex Alimentarius | Not listedDoes not appear on this jurisdiction’s permitted list. That is not the same as being prohibited. |
What it is made from
Obtained from petroleum reforming and from coal tar.
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Compare other additives on the dietary indexes.
- CAS registry number
- 108-88-3
- InChIKey
- YXFVVABEGXRONW-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- PubChem
- CID 1140
How JECFA defines it
The international specification for identity and purity, prepared by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and published by FAO. It is a different document from any above, written by a different body and revised on its own cycle; it is advisory, and a country adopts it or does not.
Toluene
Synonyms: Toluol, phenylmethane Phenylmethane; Toluol
Assay, identification and purity criteria
Description and assay
- Specification history
- Prepared at the 25th JECFA (1981), published in FNP 19 (1981) and in FNP 52 (1992). Metals and arsenic specifications revised at the 63rd JECFA (2004). An ADI 'not specified' was established at the 25th JECFA (1981) (No toxicological problems from residues as a food solvent in accordance with GMP)
- Chemical names
- Toluene, methylbenzene
- C.A.S. number
- 108-88-3
- Chemical formula
- C 7 H 8
- Formula weight
- 92.13
- Assay
- Not less than 99%
- DESCRIPTION
- Clear, colourless liquid with a characteristic odour
- FUNCTIONAL USES
- Extraction solvent
Identification
- Solubility (Vol. 4)
- Very slightly miscible with water; miscible with ethanol
- Specific gravity (Vol. 4)
- 0.864 - 0.870
Purity criteria
- Distillation range (Vol. 4)
- Not more than 1 o including 110.6 o
- Colour
- Not more than Colour Standard No. 20
- Non-volatile residue (Vol. 4)
- Not more than 5 mg/100 ml
- Sulfur compounds
- Passes test See description under TESTS
- Non-aromatic substances
- Not more than 0.2% v/v Proceed as directed in the Aromatic Hydrocarbons Determination and calculate the content of non-aromatic substances by the method of area percentage (area normalization)
- Benzene
- Not more than 0.5% v/v Proceed as directed under the Aromatic Hydrocarbons Determination
- Lead (Vol. 4)
- Not more than 2 mg/kg Determine using an atomic absorption technique appropriate to the specified level. The selection of sample size and method of sample preparation may be based on the principles of the method described in Volume 4, “Instrumental Methods.”
- Test: Sulfur compounds
- Negative for hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide by the following test: Reagents - Lead acetate solution (saturated) - Potassium Iodate Solution (10 g of KI0 3 /100 ml) - Starch Paper: Dip strips of filter paper in starch solution and dry. Procedure Make a qualitative test for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) at the time of performing the distillation test. This is done by hanging a strip of filter paper moisten with the lead acetate solution and a strip of starch paper moisted with the potassium iodate solution on the end of the condenser tube. The strips are so placed that they are suspended in the upper part of the receiving cylinder so that drops of condensate pass between the strips without touching them. If, at the end of the test, the lead acetate paper shows discoloration, H2S is present, but not SO2. If the lead acetate paper shows no discoloration but the starch iodate paper develops a blue colour, SO2 is present but not H2S. If neither paper shows discoloration, neither H2S nor SO2 is present.
Every name it appears under
60 recorded names. A label may use any of them.
CAS registry number
- 108-88-3
- 22904-44-5
Other names
- 1-Methylbenzene
- 2-methyl benzene
- 2-methylbenzene
- 3FPU23BG52
- 4-methyl-benzene
- 4-methylbenzene
- antisal 1a
- Benzene, methyl
- Benzene, methyl-
- Benzyl Alcohol Impurity 8
- CAS-108-88-3
- Caswell No. 859
- CCRIS 2366
- Dracyl
- EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 080601
- HSDB 131
- MePh
- methacide
- Methane, phenyl-
- methyl benzene
- Methyl benzol
- methyl-Benzene
- methylbenzene
- Methylbenzene anhydrous
- Methylbenzene, 9CI
- methylbenzol
- monomethyl benzene
- o-Cresol a-D-Glucuronide
- p-toluene
- para-toluene
- PhCH3
- phenyl methane
- phenyl-methane
- Phenylmethane
- RCRA waste no. U220
- RCRA waste number U220
- tolu-sol
- Tolueen
- Toluen
- Toluene
- Toluene (Methyl-13C, 99%)
- Toluene 1000 microg/mL in Methanol
- Toluene ACS Grade
- Toluene HPLC grade
- toluene solvent
- Toluene, 99.5%
- Toluene, ACS reagent
- Toluene, ACS reagent, >=99.5%
- Toluene, analytical standard
- Toluene, anhydrous
- Toluene, for HPLC
- toluene-
- TOLUENE- D8
- Toluene-13C
- TOLUENE-3,5-D2
- Tolueno
- Toluol
- Toluolo
Hazard reference values
No reference value for this substance in the sources we hold.
Evidence and how bodies read it
Studies, and the differing conclusions regulators drew from them, are curated rather than machine-read, and none has been written for this substance yet.
Common questions
Assembled from what is above, in the words the questions are usually asked in. Each answer is the same statement the relevant section makes, with the same citations behind it.
- What is Toluene?
- Toluene is an aromatic hydrocarbon specified by JECFA as an extraction solvent.
- What is Toluene used for in food?
- It is listed as a solvent — the role the US assigns it. This page shows every function each regulator records, with the citation for each.
- Is Toluene vegan?
- Yes. Toluene is not derived from animals, and is suitable for vegetarians. This page says what it is made from and how.
Sources for this page
- jecfaspecs retrieved 2026-09-23
Full licence terms and publisher details on Sources. How this page is built and updated: Method.
Machine-readable: a JSON record of this additive is given on request —how to ask for access.
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