Abstract: The flow injection analysis (FIA)-spectrophotometric method for the determination of volatile phenols in water sample was studied. The analytical data were compared with those obtained from the standard method of 4-almido antipyrine spectrophotometry. The results showed that there was no statistically significant differences between these two methods(t=1.94<t_0.05(6)=2.45, P>0.05). The precision (RSD of 1.25%, n=7),accuracy (recoveries of 91%~105%) and other analytical indexes were in accordance with the analytical criteria. Based on the established FIA-spectrophotometry, the preservation conditions of water samples with volatile phenol were investigated. The results showed that the water samples should be immediately detected after sampling, otherwise the samples should be preserved in alkali condition (pH=13) at temperature of lower than 20℃ for less than 7 days, or preserved in phosporic acid and CuSO₄ medium (pH=3.5) at 4℃ for less than 3 days.