benzene

Also known as C6H6, [6]annulene, BNZ, cyclohexa-1,3,5-triene, 1,3,5-cyclohexatriene, benzol, benzole, benzolene

Benzene is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H6. The benzene molecule is composed of six carbon atoms joined in a planar hexagonal ring with one hydrogen atom attached to each. As it contains only carbon and hydrogen atoms, benzene is a hydrocarbon.

AI overview

Benzene is a simple organic chemical made up of six carbon atoms arranged in a ring shape, with one hydrogen atom attached to each carbon. It's important because it's one of the most basic hydrocarbons and serves as a building block for many other chemicals and materials.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

In the Vinony graph

Within Vinony's link graph, benzene is referenced by 2,970 other articles, and connects out to leukemia, August Kekulé and propylene.

Vinony files it under Annulenes, Aromatic hydrocarbons and Aromatic solvents.

Its subject is documented across 91 Wikipedia language editions.

Chemical data

Formula: C6H6
Molecular weight: 78.11 g/mol
IUPAC name: benzene
SMILES: C1=CC=CC=C1
InChIKey: UHOVQNZJYSORNB-UHFFFAOYSA-N
XLogP: 2.1
Polar surface area: 0 Å²
H-bond donors: 0
H-bond acceptors: 0
Formal charge: 0

via PubChem

Research

59,145 papers

Benzene.ReviewReviews of environmental contamination and toxicology · 1988DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4612-3922-2_2
Human biomonitoring of low-level benzene exposures.ReviewCritical reviews in toxicology · 2022Boogaard PJDOI: 10.1080/10408444.2023.2175642
The toxicology of benzene.ReviewEnvironmental health perspectives · 1993Snyder R, Witz G, Goldstein BDDOI: 10.1289/ehp.93100293
Benzene risk assessment: does new evidence on myelodysplastic syndrome justify a new approach?ReviewCritical reviews in toxicology · 2018Li W, Schnatter ARDOI: 10.1080/10408444.2018.1437389
Biochemical toxicity of benzene.ReviewJournal of environmental biology · 2005Rana SV, Verma Y
Occupational benzene exposure and risk of nervous system cancers: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Cancer epidemiology · 2025Mangiaterra S, Boffetta P, Seyyedsalehi MSDOI: 10.1016/j.canep.2025.102779
Benzene exposure in industries using or manufacturing paint in China--a literature review, 1956-2005.Journal of occupational and environmental hygiene · 2009Liu H, Liang Y, Bowes S et al.DOI: 10.1080/15459620903249646
Benzene's toxicity: a consolidated short review of human and animal studies.ReviewHuman & experimental toxicology · 2007Ahmad Khan HDOI: 10.1177/0960327107083974

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Mass: 78.046950192
Image: Benzene sample.jpg
Autonomy: 498

Show 29 more facts

Commons category: Benzene
chemical formula: C₆H₆
density: 0.88
NIOSH Pocket Guide ID: 0049
boiling point: 80
speed of sound: 1310
immediately dangerous to life or health: 1595
melting point: 5.53
lower flammable limit: 1.2
vapor pressure: 75
flash point: -11
solubility: 0.07
upper flammable limit: 7.8
ionization energy: 9.25
time-weighted average exposure limit: 20
short-term exposure limit: 25
minimal lethal dose: 52308
canonical SMILES: C1=CC=CC=C1
Unicode character: ⌬
median lethal dose (LD50): 48
ceiling exposure limit: 3
dynamic viscosity: 0.0652
standard molar entropy: 172.8
standard enthalpy of formation: 49080
specific heat capacity: 16.157
refractive index: 1.501
subject named as: Benzol
electric dipole moment: 0
time of discovery or invention: 1825-00-00

Sources (13)

via Wikidata · CC0

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Encyclopedic overview

37 sections

Contents

History
Discovery
Ring formula
Nomenclature
Early applications
Occurrence
Structure
Benzene derivatives
Production
Catalytic reforming
Toluene hydrodealkylation
Toluene disproportionation
Steam cracking
Other methods
Uses
Component of gasoline
Reactions
Sulfonation, chlorination, nitration
Hydrogenation
Metal complexes
Health effects
Exposure to benzene
Benzene exposure limits
Toxicology
Biomarkers of exposure
Biotransformations
Molecular toxicology
Biological oxidation and carcinogenic activity
Routes of exposure
Inhalation
Exposure from soft drinks
Contamination of water supply
Genocide
See also
Explanatory notes
References
External links

Benzene is a natural constituent of petroleum and is one of the elementary petrochemicals. Because of the cyclic continuous pi bonds between the carbon atoms and satisfying Hückel's rule, benzene is classed as an aromatic hydrocarbon. Benzene is a colorless and highly flammable liquid with a sweet smell, and is partially responsible for the aroma of gasoline. It is used primarily as a precursor to the manufacture of chemicals with more complex structures, such as ethylbenzene and cumene, of which billions of kilograms are produced annually. Although benzene is a major industrial chemical, it finds limited use in consumer items because of its toxicity. Benzene is a volatile organic compound.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “benzene” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.