The Abel test is a method developed by the British chemist

Frederick Abel Sir Frederick Augustus Abel, 1st Baronet (17 July 18276 September 1902) was an English chemist who was recognised as the leading British authority on explosives. He is best known for the invention of cordite as a replacement for gunpowder in f ...

(1827–1902) to determine the

flash point The flash point of a material is the "lowest liquid temperature at which, under certain standardized conditions, a liquid gives off vapours in a quantity such as to be capable of forming an ignitable vapour/air mixture". (EN 60079-10-1) The fl ...

of a given sample of

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

in order to ascertain the temperature at which it could safely be stored or used. The test was mandated by the British Petroleum Act 1879, which fixed the minimum flash point for general and commercial use at .''Hazardous Chemicals: Agents of Risk and Change, 1800-2000'', edited by Ernst Homburg and Elisabeth Vaupel (Berghahn Books, 2019), p. 30.

References

{{Reflist Chemical tests Laws in the United Kingdom