Color Tests for the Presumptive Identification of a Range of Benzodiazepines

Color tests are presumptive chemical tests that determine the class of drug in both laboratory and field settings. Despite the rising popularity of benzodiazepines and the usefulness of color tests, there is no widely accepted color test for identifying them. This study tested six different color tests against five benzodiazepines, including diazepam, clonazepam, lorazepam, alprazolam, and flualprazolam, to identify which of the tests would work most generally across all benzodiazepines. Of the six tests, the McKibben test, the Janovsky test, and the Zimmerman test all showed potential usefulness as a presumptive color test. More studies should be done on a wider range of benzodiazepines and other substances to verify the specificity of these tests.