RECENTLY the Society for Analytical Chemistry issued a warning1 against the use of benzidine, which has been recognised as a carcinogenic compound. The Ministry of Labour is therefore proposing a general prohibition of its manufacture, handling, storage and use. As the authorities in other countries are expected to follow suit, chemical analysis and especially spot-test analysis will be greatly affected. About sixty spot-test procedures are known in which benzidine is used as a reagent. The appeal made by the Society for Analytical Chemistry to replace benzidine by alternative non-toxic reagents is therefore of the utmost importance.
The chemistry of specific, selective, and sensitive reactions has the following two tasks as its main objectives: (1) the gathering and classification of, and commenting on, experimental findings which are connected, either directly or indirectly, with the specificity, selectivity, and sensitivity of analytical methods.
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