Silicone as a trace contaminant in laboratory solvents

This paper examines a suite of lipid solvents for their utility as solvents for silicone analysis by Raman spectroscopy, and discusses the observation that off-the-shelf reagents could be contaminated by silicone during manufacture. Of the solvents examined, only chloroform was transparent in those spectral regions (chiefly 500 cm-1) in which silicone exhibits its Raman spectrum. Also, the chloroform examined showed evidence of silicone contamination. Therefore, chloroform is suggested as a suitable solvent for Raman spectroscopic work involving silicone, if one is careful to confirm that the chosen chloroform is not contaminated by silicone.