Read the document for the bottle you have
A solvent specification can look precise while answering the wrong question. Before comparing its numbers, match the product name, supplier, catalogue code, grade and document version to the supplied bottle. A document for a chemically related product or another grade is useful background, not an authoritative specification for your material.
The first pass is a matching task. Is the document a specification, technical data sheet, SDS or batch-specific report? Does its region or language match the applicable product information? If two records disagree, preserve both and ask the supplier to resolve the mismatch rather than choosing the more attractive number.
On a narrow screen, scroll the diagram sideways to read every label.
Keep this process proportionate. The aim is a dependable input record, not a demand for every document mentioned online. Some information may be supplied in a combined product sheet; some lot data may not be available. Record the actual evidence and any unresolved question without inventing a passing result.
A typical value is not a sales limit
A technical data sheet can describe what is typical of a product, while a specification sets out named limits or requirements. Dow’s DPG LO+ sheet explicitly distinguishes its typical property data from sales specifications. Retain that distinction when moving a value into your notebook.
“Typical density at a stated temperature” and “acceptable density range under a named method” are different claims. Neither becomes your lot’s measured result merely because it appears beside the product name. If a lot report is available, connect it to the lot code and the relevant specification revision.
Fictional reading exercise
Three similar-looking entries
“Typical property: 1.02 g/mL at 25°C”, “Specification: range stated under method X” and “Lot result: measured value reported under method X” have different roles. These are invented teaching entries, not acceptance criteria for any shop product.
When a report says “conforms”, record that reported outcome. Do not silently replace it with a numerical result the document does not provide. Likewise, a limit shown as “maximum” is not the quantity necessarily present in the bottle.
Carry the unit, basis and method with the number
Percentage is incomplete without its basis. Mass-based assay, volume-based assay and chromatographic assay entries should retain their original descriptions. For a concrete example, Merck’s product 100986 specification lists separate m/m and V/V ethanol assays. Those labels must stay attached to the numbers; this is not a choice between two conflicting purities.
Water is often a separate field. The official Scientific Laboratory Supplies ethanol A.R. specification presents water in % w/w separately from purity and non-volatiles. That layout illustrates why subtracting one assay number from 100 is not a reliable way to reconstruct all the other constituents.
The CITROFOL AI Extra manufacturer specification similarly separates assay, water and acidity, and gives temperature-specific physical-property fields. Its host is a document platform, so verify that the current manufacturer or your supplier still applies the version to the product you hold.
A physical property without its temperature or method may be a poor comparator. Keep conditions such as temperature, pressure and test method wherever the source gives them. This guide does not provide conversion factors between unlike assays or imply that a higher headline assay always makes a better perfumery solvent.
A practical specification checklist
Scroll sideways to see every column when needed.
| Field | Record | Ask when unclear |
|---|---|---|
| Identity and grade | Exact name, product code, supplier, grade and declared composition | Does this document apply to this bottle? |
| Assay or content | Number, unit, basis, method and whether it is a limit or result | What does this assay measure? |
| Water | Separate stated value or limit, basis and method | Is water specified separately? |
| Physical properties | Units, conditions and “typical” versus specification status | Are the two values comparable? |
| Odour or appearance | The exact descriptive or acceptance wording | What scope does that statement have? |
| Dates and lot | Issue/revision date, lot link and any stated shelf-life or retest wording | Is a newer applicable record available? |
| Safety | Current applicable SDS reference and assessed handling procedure | Have product or jurisdiction details changed? |
Use the table to expose missing context, not to create your own release specification. A blank field means “not recorded” or “not supplied”, not zero. “Not tested” and “not detected” also need their own wording; do not collapse them into the same answer.
A grade name is not a finished-use approval
Analytical, fragrance, cosmetic and other grade descriptions point to different product specifications or intended markets. Read what is actually claimed. A laboratory grade optimised for a particular test is not automatically the best sensory medium, and an assay alone does not establish suitability for direct application to people.
Keep hazards separate from quality attributes. A material can meet its specification and still require important handling controls. Conversely, a “low odour” description does not classify its hazards. Use the product’s current SDS and the requirements of the actual work rather than treating a purity number as a safety rating.
For an existing preparation, the supplier’s product information takes priority over your guess about its name. A CAS entry can help identify a substance or defined product context, but it cannot reveal undeclared blend proportions or prove equivalence between grades.
End with one precise supplier question
A useful query is specific: “Does specification revision B apply to lot L, and is the stated water limit expressed by mass?” That is easier to resolve than “Can you send all technical documents?” Keep the response beside the record, including the date and which uncertainty it answered.
Then connect the document reading to the planned work. If your question concerns a sensory background, use a matched blank study. If it concerns the contribution of a supplied dilution, use the stated strength basis. If it concerns a finished product, document review is one input to the wider suitability and safety assessment.
The result should be a short traceable record: exact product, applicable version, retained units, clearly labelled limits and observations, and the next unresolved question. You have improved the decision when another person can follow that trail without having to guess what a number meant.
