Phenol
CAS 108-95-2
| Product name | Phenol |
|---|---|
| Synonyms | carbolic acid, hydroxybenzene, phenol crystals, molten phenol, C6H5OH |
| C.A.S. number | 108-95-2 |
| Molecular formula | C6H5OH (C6H6O) |
| Molecular weight | 94.11 g/mol |
| Grade supplied against | 99.9% min |
| Appearance | Colourless to light-pink or white deliquescent crystals, needles or crystalline mass with a characteristic sweet, acrid, medicinal odour. Darkens to pink or red on exposure to air and light (normal oxidation, not necessarily off-specification). Supplied and handled as a colourless liquid above about 41 C. Liquefies with approximately 8 % water (NIOSH). |
| Product group | Solvents & Organic Chemicals |
| HSN code | 2907 11 10 |
| Country of origin | As stated on the producer’s documents for the lot supplied; confirmed at offer stage |
| Packing | ISO tank · 225 kg drum |
| Storage | Keep locked up and restrict access to trained personnel only. Keep the container tightly closed in a well-ventilated area and protect from light (phenol discolours to pink and red on exposure to light and air). Use steel containers (INEOS). Recommended storage temperatures per INEOS: 50-60 C for liquid/molten phenol, 15-25 C for solid phenol. Store separated from food and feedstuffs, and away from solvents, aluminium, aldehydes, halogens, peroxides, acids, bases and oxidising agents. Bund the area and ensure no access to drains or surface water. Provide a safety shower and eyewash AND a stock of PEG 300 or PEG 400 at the storage and handling points. For molten storage, control the heat-tracing temperature - overheating accelerates discolouration and vapour release, and the vapour is toxic by inhalation. |
| S. No. | Test parameter | Specification | Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Description | Colourless to light-pink or white deliquescent crystals, needles or crystalline mass with a characteristic sweet, acrid, medicinal odour. Darkens to pink or red on exposure to air and light (normal oxidation, not necessarily off-specification). Supplied and handled as a colourless liquid above about 41 C. Liquefies with approximately 8 % water (NIOSH). | Visual |
| 2 | Identification | Conforms to the substance supplied | Instrumental or chemical test, per method agreed |
| 3 | Assay / grade | 99.9% min | Titrimetry or instrumental, per method agreed |
| 4 | Physical state | Solid at ambient temperature (melting point 40.9 C), but commonly stored, shipped and handled MOLTEN as a liquid above about 41 C. The physical state on any given day depends on ambient temperature, which matters in India. | Visual |
| 5 | Solubility in water | 84 g/L at 20 C and 87 g/L at 25 C (INEOS); 82,800 mg/L at 25 C (PubChem); about 9 % at 25 C (NIOSH). Fully miscible with water above about 68 C (INEOS). Freely soluble in ethanol, ether, glycerol and most organic solvents. Partial water solubility is what allows small amounts of water to carry phenol INTO the skin - see skin first aid. | Per the test method agreed |
| 6 | pH | 4 to 5 in a 10 g/L (1 % w/v) aqueous solution at 20 C (INEOS producer SDS). Weakly acidic (pKa about 10); phenol is not a strong acid, and its severe skin and eye damage is caused by protein denaturation and coagulation, not by acidity. Do not present it as an acid burn. | Potentiometry on an aqueous suspension |
| 7 | Relative density | 1.06-1.07 g/cm3 at 20 C (PubChem/Merck 1.071 g/cm3; NIOSH specific gravity 1.06; INEOS 1.07 g/cm3 at 20 C). Denser than water - phenol sinks, which matters for spill response. | Pyknometry or gas displacement |
| 8 | Melting / freezing point | 40.9 C (INEOS producer SDS; PubChem/CRC 40.91 C; NIOSH 109 F; ILO ICSC 0070 gives 41 C) | Thermal analysis |
| 9 | Boiling point | 181.8 C (PubChem/CRC; 181.75 C at 101.3 kPa per Kirk-Othmer; INEOS 181 C; NIOSH 359 F; ICSC 0070 gives 182 C) | Distillation range |
| 10 | Flash point | 79 C closed cup (ILO ICSC 0070; NIOSH 175 F = 79.4 C). The INEOS producer SDS gives 81 C closed cup, and Merck via PubChem gives 85 C open cup. Publish 79-81 C closed cup and name the method. Combustible, but the toxic and corrosive hazards dominate the risk picture, not flammability. | Closed cup |
| 11 | Additional parameters | To the specification agreed before order | As agreed |
Three entries apply depending on the form shipped, all confirmed by the INEOS producer SDS: UN 1671 for phenol as a solid; UN 2312 for phenol molten; UN 2821 for phenol solutions. · Class 6.1 (Toxic) for all three entries - UN 1671, UN 2312 and UN 2821 · Packing group II. The INEOS producer SDS declares Packing Group II for the solid (UN 1671), the molten (UN 2312) and the solution (UN 2821) entries. Caveat: for UN 2821 PHENOL SOLUTION the packing group depends on the concentration and resulting toxicity of the particular solution, and the UN Model Regulations dangerous goods list accommodates more than one packing group under that entry. The packing group for any solution you actually ship must be re-derived from the UN dangerous goods list against that solution's concentration - this has not been confirmed here for dilute solutions, so do not publish PG II as universal for UN 2821.
Proper shipping name: PHENOL, SOLID (UN 1671, Class 6.1, PG II); PHENOL, MOLTEN (UN 2312, Class 6.1, PG II); PHENOL SOLUTION (UN 2821, Class 6.1, PG II subject to the concentration caveat above). Choose the entry that matches the form actually offered for transport. Shipping molten phenol under UN 1671 - or solid phenol under UN 2312 - is a declaration error, and because phenol's melting point sits at 40.9 C, material loaded as a solid can arrive as a liquid; the entry is determined by the condition in which it is offered for carriage.
Need this on your own enquiry, or need the producer’s batch certificate of analysis for a consignment? Email the sales desk or see what travels with the load.