So, another of those "but why" questions. Why methanol? Why not ethanol instead? Or an even heavier alcohol? Methanol is poisonous - 4 ounces will kill a man. 4 ounces of ethanol, OTOH, and life is good :).The only reason I can think of is that we produce and use a lot of methanol in industry, and therefore it is cheaply available.

On Mon, 19 Feb 2007 12:27:34 -0800, "Ook" wrote in :Looks like ethanol has more btu than methanol:'ll bet it's the consumability that restricts production.Folks would have to swear up, down, and inside out thatnone of the product would be used as a beverage. As soonas the beverage laws come into effect, you've got a zillionfood purity inspectors and tax collectors to deal with. Marty

Why methanol instead of ethanol (or proponal or butanol, pentanol, etc.)?

Feb 19, 2007 21 Replies

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Ed Forsythe 19 years ago

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mjd 19 years ago

What are you talking about? We already know they are two different chemicals. No two alcohols could be closer than those two, derived respectively from the simplest alkanes, methane and ethane. Those names are as old as the hills and simply refer to the traditional base material from which they were made. It ain't the only way to make them.

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