Tetrachloro-''m''-xylene (tetrachlorometaxylene, or TCMX) is the

organochlorine compound An organochloride, organochlorine compound, chlorocarbon, or chlorinated hydrocarbon is an organic compound containing at least one covalent bond, covalently bonded atom of chlorine. The chloroalkane class (alkanes with one or more hydrogens subst ...

with the formula C₆Cl₄(CH₃)₂. It is the

chlorinated In chemistry, halogenation is a chemical reaction that entails the introduction of one or more halogens into a compound. Halide-containing compounds are pervasive, making this type of transformation important, e.g. in the production of polymers, ...

derivative of ''m''-xylene in which the four aromatic hydrogen atoms are replaced by chlorine. It is prepared by

ferric chloride Iron(III) chloride is the inorganic compound with the formula . Also called ferric chloride, it is a common compound of iron in the +3 oxidation state. The anhydrous compound is a crystalline solid with a melting point of 307.6 °C. The colo ...

-catalyzed reaction of the xylene with chlorine. TCMX is used as an

internal standard An internal standard in analytical chemistry is a chemical substance that is added in a constant amount to samples, the blank and calibration standards in a chemical analysis. This substance can then be used for calibration by plotting the ratio of ...

in the analysis of

organochloride An organochloride, organochlorine compound, chlorocarbon, or chlorinated hydrocarbon is an organic compound containing at least one covalent bond, covalently bonded atom of chlorine. The chloroalkane class (alkanes with one or more hydrogens subst ...

s, particularly organochloride pesticides.

References

Chlorobenzenes {{organohalide-stub