toluene or methylbenzene, C₇H₈, colorless liquid aromatic hydrocarbon that melts at -95°C; and boils at 110.8°C;. It is insoluble in water but highly soluble in most organic solvents. Toluene is obtained from coal tar and petroleum by distillation. It is used as a solvent and as a starting material for the synthesis of many compounds, including dyes and explosives. When toluene is treated with a mixture of nitric and sulfuric acids (a process known as nitration), trinitrotoluene (TNT) is produced.

Colourless, flammable, toxic liquid hydrocarbon aromatic compound (C₆H₅CH₃), the methyl derivative of benzene. Found in coal-tar light oil and in petroleum, it is obtained chiefly from the processing of petroleum fractions. It is used as a solvent, diluent, and thinner; as an antiknock additive in airplane gasoline; and as a raw material for TNT, benzoic acid and its derivatives, saccharin, dyes, photographic chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

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