Tariff classification of high-purity toluene turns on chapter notes, not outdated HSN guidance, and falls in Chapter 29.

A product identified by chemical test as toluene, containing only trace impurities, was treated as a separate chemically defined organic compound for tariff classification. Classification was to be determined primarily from the tariff heading read with the relevant section notes and chapter notes; HSN explanatory notes were only a guide and could not override the tariff text. Because Chapter 29 covers separate chemically defined organic compounds, whether or not containing impurities, and the department failed to show that the product was a mixture or otherwise fell within Chapter 27, the product was classified under Heading 2902.30 in Chapter 29. The assessee's purity certificates supported that conclusion.

---

---

Issues: Whether the product toluene, found on chemical test to possess the characteristics of toluene but containing impurities in traces, was classifiable under Chapter 29 or Chapter 27 of the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985.

Analysis: Classification had to be determined primarily on the basis of the tariff heading together with the relevant section notes and chapter notes; HSN explanatory notes were only a guide. Chapter 29 covers separate chemically defined organic compounds, whether or not containing impurities. The product was accepted to be toluene, a separate chemically defined organic compound, and the department did not produce evidence to show that it was a mixture or a product falling within Chapter 27. The certificates produced by the assessee supported the finding that the product was high purity toluene with only traces of other hydrocarbons, and the department's reliance on an outdated HSN note was insufficient to displace the tariff classification under Chapter 29.

Conclusion: The product was classifiable under Heading 2902.30 in Chapter 29 and not under Chapter 27, and the assessee succeeded on classification.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a product is established to be a separate chemically defined organic compound and the department fails to prove that it is a mixture falling in Chapter 27, it must be classified under Chapter 29 even if it contains only trace impurities.

---