SCIENTIFIC SERVICES

Volatile organic compounds

These compounds have high enough vapour pressures to significantly vapourise and enter the atmosphere under normal conditions. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) include the following:

• Acrylonitrile
  This pungent-smelling colorless liquid is an important monomer for the manufacture of useful plastics, especially polyacrylonitrile which comprises acrylic fibers.
• Benzene
  Historically, benzene derives its name from "gum benzoin", sometimes called "benjamin", an aromatic resin known to pharmacists and perfumers since the 15th century. It is an important industrial solvent and is used in the production of drugs, plastics, synthetic rubber, and dyes.
• 1, 3 Butadiene
  It is an important industrial chemical used as a monomer in the production of synthetic rubber. It is most commonly used for the production of automobile tires when mixed with styrene.
• Isoprene
  At room temperature, isoprene is a colorless liquid which is highly flammable. This compound is formed naturally in animals and plants and is one of the most common hydrocarbons found in the human body.
• Toluene
  A clear, water-insoluble liquid with the typical smell of paint thinners, toluene derived its name from the older name toluol, which refers to tolu balsam, an aromatic extract from the tropical Colombian tree Myroxylon balsamum. Toluene can be used as an octane booster in gasoline fuels used car engines.