TOLUENE - Questions on Safety and Toxic Effects. Q: Will toluene damage my engine or other parts of my car? A: A 5 or 10% increase in the aromatic content of gas will most likely be well within the refining specifications of gasoline defined by ASTM D4814, which specify an aromatic content of between 20% and 45%. What this means is that if the 92 octane gas that you started off with had an aromatic content of say 30% and you increased it by 10% to 40% you would still be left with a mix that meets the industry definition of gasoline. So the above question would amount to: "Will gasoline damage my engine or other parts of my car?" Even in the unlikely event that the 92 octane gas has a aromatic content of 45% the resulting mix would still be within the bounds of gasoline sold in other countries. Q: Isn't toluene an extremely toxic substance? A: The common perception of toluene's toxicity far exceeds reality. Fortunately there is an ample body of information available that specifically addresses this question. Toluene is more toxic than gasoline but it is certainly not agent orange or cyanide. See the Agency for Toxic Substances link below in the reference section. US Environmental Protection Agency Chemical Summary US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) National priority list of toxic substances Note that the ATSDR also rates gasoline as a hazardous substance. Mobil's spec sheet for toluene even goes as far as saying that "Based on available toxicological information, it has been determined that this product poses no significant health risk when used and handled properly." Q: Isn't toluene an active ingredient of TNT (trinitrotoluene) and is thus deadly? A: In the same way that cotton wool is the base ingredient of nitrocellulose (guncotton) which in turn is the main ingredient in modern smokeless gunpowder. Using this reasoning one could conclude that cotton wool is a deadly substance. This question reflects a poor understanding of basic chemistry but unfortunately it has been asked often enough. Q: What safety measures can you recommend in handling toluene? A: Use the same precautions as you would with gasoline. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reference materials: 1. Gasoline FAQ 2. McLaren Honda Turbo - a technical appraisal Ian Bamsey ISBN 0-85429-840-1, published 1990 3. Chevron's excellent Motor Gasolines Technical Review 4. Agency for Toxic Substances FAQ on Toluene     In summary:     Use in a well ventilated area, don't drink even a little of it, and     report spills of more than 1000 pounds to the National Response Center 5. Toxic Chemicals in your Environment (Australia) FAQ on Toluene     In summary:     this "Total Environment Center" likes a totally chemical free environment,     and even at that they can't find fault about much more than acute exposure     cases, and they also say not to drink any of it. 6. Exxon Chemical Americas - Toluene, Technical Material Safety Data Sheet 7. Recicladora Temarry de Mexico - Recycling Processor     Recycling information and Material Safety Data Sheets on numerous chemicals including Toluene.

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