What is methanol for?

Methanol is widely used to produce various solvents, adhesives, antifreeze and fuels.

The chemical formula of methanol is CH3OH, which is a colorless and transparent organic solvent with a unique bouquet. Because its molecular structure contains hydroxyl (-OH), methanol has many unique chemical properties and wide applications.

First of all, in the industrial field, methanol is widely used to produce various solvents, adhesives, antifreeze and fuels. Because of its good solubility and volatility, methanol is also widely used in coatings, inks, textiles and other industries. In addition, methanol is an important source of many chemical raw materials, such as formaldehyde, formic acid and methylamine.

Secondly, in the energy field, methanol, as an important alternative energy source, has the characteristics of cleanliness, environmental protection and regeneration. Methanol fuel cell has high energy conversion efficiency, and the combustion products are only water and carbon dioxide, which has no pollution to the environment. Therefore, methanol is regarded as one of the energy sources for sustainable development in the future.

In addition, methanol is also widely used in agriculture. As a solvent for pesticides, methanol can reduce the surface tension of pesticides, improve the adhesion and permeability of pesticides, and thus improve the control effect of pesticides. At the same time, methanol can also be used to produce biocatalysts and promote technological innovation in agricultural industry.

The discovery process of methanol:

The discovery of methanol can be traced back to ancient times, but its clear identification and naming as an independent chemical substance was completed in the development of modern chemistry. As early as ancient Egypt, people used mixed substances including methanol to preserve corpses in the technique of corpse preservation. However, these early applications did not separately identify and study methanol.

/kloc-in the 7th century, the British chemist robert boyle made methanol for the first time in the process of 166 1 distillation of boxwood, but he didn't clearly identify it as a new compound at that time. Methanol was originally called coke alcohol because it was obtained by dry distillation of wood.

Until19th century, French chemists Jean-batiste Duma and Eugene Peligert made a deeper study of this substance, and in 1834, they determined its elemental composition, namely, one carbon atom, four hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, with the chemical formula of CH3OH. Since then, methanol has been widely recognized and applied as an important organic chemical substance.

Refer to the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia-Methanol