• Briefly, what do I need to know about gasoline in an emergency situation?
• Where do you find gasoline?
• What should I know about the composition and purity of gasoline?
• What are some synonyms for gasoline?
• With so many names for gasoline, is there a unique identifier for this chemical?

Briefly, what do I need to know about gasoline in an emergency situation?

Gasoline is a colourless liquid with characteristic odour. It may be dyed yellow. Gasoline is an EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE LIQUID AND VAPOUR. The liquid can accumulate static charge by flow or agitation. It can float on water and may spread to distant locations and/or spread fire The vapour is heavier than air and may spread long distances making distant ignition and flash back possible. Gasoline is a POSSIBLE CANCER HAZARD. It may cause cancer (based on animal data). It is a central nervous system depressant and exposure to high vapour concentrations may cause headache, nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, unconsciousness and death. It is also an aspiration hazard. Swallowing or vomiting of the liquid may result in aspiration into the lungs.

Where do you find gasoline?

Fuel for motor vehicles; some use as diluent and solvent.

What should I know about the composition and purity of gasoline?

This chemical profile record refers to common, commercial unleaded gasoline used for automotive purposes, unless otherwise specified.

Gasoline is a complex mixture of petroleum hydrocarbons. The composition of the hydrocarbons depends on factors such as the origin of the crude oil used for refining and refining conditions. In general, the hydrocarbon groups consist of chains containing 4 to 12 carbons, and are mostly paraffins (alkanes), isoparaffins (isoalkanes), cycloparaffins (cycloalkanes) and aromatics. n-Hexane (1.5-3.0%) and benzene (0.5-2.0%) are normally present.

In addition, trace or small amounts of additives and blending agents such as anti-knock compounds (MMT - methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl), anti-icing agents, anti-rust agents and metal deactivators can be found in gasoline.

The chemical and physical properties of gasoline are highly variable depending on the specific product. As well, the hazards of gasoline are affected by the proportion of individual components. For example, gasoline containing a significant proportion of n-hexane may have toxic effects attributable to n-hexane. For information on specific components in gasoline consult the manufacturer or the appropriate chemical profile record(s) where possible.

What are some synonyms for gasoline?

Gasoline is also known as automotive gasoline, petrol, motor spirits, benzin, natural gasoline, gasolene and gas.

With so many names for gasoline, is there a unique identifier for this chemical?

Its CAS Registry Number is 8006-61-9. This number is assigned by the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) in the United States and is used as a unique identifier number world-wide.

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Document last updated on February 19, 1999

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