Methanol CAS：67-56-1
Methanol is a highly versatile solvent that can mix completely with water and many kinds of organic solvents. It has a melting point of -97.8°C and a boiling point of 64.5°C, giving it strong volatile properties. At room temperature, methanol does not corrode most metals, though it does react with aluminum and lead. It serves a wide variety of industrial uses, including being a solvent, antifreeze ingredient, fuel, and neutralizing medium.
Methanol, often referred to as wood alcohol, is the simplest structure among saturated monohydric alcohols.
This organic chemical appears as a transparent, colorless liquid with high volatility, and it is both flammable and severely toxic.
Even a small intake of 5 to 10 milliliters can cause permanent visual impairment, while larger amounts can lead to death. It gives off a faint, typical alcohol-like smell.
At room temperature, it does not corrode most metals, except for aluminum and lead.
Its main physical indexes include a relative density of 0.792 at 20/4°C, a melting point of -97.8°C, and a boiling point of 64.5°C.
The flash point is 12.22°C, with a spontaneous ignition temperature of 463.89°C.
The vapor density is 1.11, and the vapor pressure is 13.33 kPa at 21.2°C. When mixed with air, methanol vapor forms explosive combinations in the volume concentration range of 6% to 36.5%.
It can dissolve completely in water, ethanol, ether, benzene, ketones, halogenated hydrocarbons and most other common organic solvents.
In industrial production, methanol is widely used as a solvent, antifreeze component, fuel material and neutralizing medium.
Parameters
| Melting point | -98 °C(lit.) |
| Boiling point | 65.4 °C(lit.) |
| density | 0.791 g/mL at 25 °C |
| vapor density | 1.11 (vs air) |
| vapor pressure | 410 mm Hg ( 50 °C) |
| refractive index | n20/D 1.329(lit.) |
| Fp | 52 °F |
| storage temp. | 2-8°C |
| solubility | benzene: miscible(lit.) |
| pka | 15.2(at 25℃) |
| form | Liquid Free From Particulates |
| color | <10(APHA) |
| Specific Gravity | 0.793 (20/20℃) |
| Relative polarity | 0.762 |
| Odor | Faint alcohol odor detectable at 4 to 6000 ppm (mean = 160 ppm) |
| PH | 6.8 (20°C in H2O) |
| Flame Color | Pale blue |
| Odor Threshold | 33ppm |
| explosive limit | 5.5-44%(V) |
| Water Solubility | miscible |
| λmax | λ: 210 nm Amax: 0.50 |
| λ: 220 nm Amax: 0.30 | |
| λ: 230 nm Amax: 0.15 | |
| λ: 235 nm Amax: 0.10 | |
| λ: 240 nm Amax: 0.05 | |
| λ: 260 nm Amax: 0.01 | |
| λ: 400 nm Amax: 0.01 | |
| Merck | 145,957 |
| BRN | 1098229 |
| Henry's Law Constant | 4.99 at 25 °C (headspace-GC, Gupta et al., 2000) |
| Exposure limits | TLV-TWA (200 ppm) (ACGIH), 260mg/m3, 1040mg/m3 (800 ppm) 15minutes (NIOSH); STEL 310mg/m3 (250 ppm); IDLH 25,000 ppm (NIOSH). |
| Dielectric constant | 33.6（20℃） |
| LogP | -0.77 |
| Surface tension | 22.22mN/m at 298.15K |
| Surface tension | 22.7mN/m at 20°C |
| CAS DataBase Reference | 67-56-1(CAS DataBase Reference) |
| NIST Chemistry Reference | Methyl alcohol(67-56-1) |
| EPA Substance Registry System | Methanol (67-56-1) |
| Absorption | in accordance |
Safety Information
Hazard Codes | Xn,T,F |
Risk Statements | 10-20/21/22-68/20/21/22-39/23/24/25-23/24/25-11-40-36-36/38-23/25 |
Safety Statements | 36/37-7-45-16-24/25-23-24-26 |
RIDADR | UN 1170 3/PG 2 |
OEB | A |
OEL | TWA: 200 ppm (260 mg/m3), STEL: 250 ppm (325 mg/m3) [skin] |
WGK Germany | 1 |
RTECS | PC1400000 |
F | 3-10 |
Autoignition Temperature | 385 °C |
TSCA | Yes |
HS Code | 2905 11 00 |
HazardClass | 3 |
PackingGroup | II |
Hazardous Substances Data | 67-56-1(Hazardous Substances Data) |
Toxicity | LD50 oral (rat) |
IDLA | 6,000 ppm |
Methanol serves as a highly useful industrial raw material and clean fuel.
It is mainly applied in fine chemicals, plastics and related sectors to manufacture formaldehyde, acetic acid, methyl chloride, methylamine, dimethyl sulfate and other organic products, and also acts as an important intermediate for pesticides and pharmaceuticals. After proper purification, it can be used directly as clean fuel or mixed with gasoline. Methanol can undergo esterification with acids like sulfuric acid and carbonic acid. It reacts slowly with hydrochloric acid at 0°C. When heated to 160°C with catalysts such as sulfuric acid, metaphosphoric acid or boron trioxide, it dehydrates into dimethyl ether. Under alumina or thorium oxide catalysis at 200–400°C, methanol vapor also generates dimethyl ether through dehydration. As a solvent, methanol dissolves part of metal halides and organic acid salts, while sulfates have low solubility and carbonates are nearly insoluble. It is also a core material for producing formaldehyde, formic acid and various esters from inorganic and organic acids.
