To understand whether alcohol methanol is an organic solvent or not, we need to first define what an organic solvent is. An organic solvent can be defined as a type of compound that is extremely volatile. The term “volatile” refers to the attribute of being able to vaporize at room temperature. Generally, this usually happens in liquids that have a high dissolving rate, which is a common characteristic of alcohol. The use of organic solvents to dissolve materials and even substances is quite common. In other words, the solvent is what dissolves materials and substances into a solution or extracts certain qualities from substances.
What is Methanol?
Methanol is a chemical compound (CH3OH) that is both a biochemical and alcohol. As we know, alcohols are compounds that have a methyl group (CH3), a hydroxy group (OH), and a hydroxyl group (OH). The substance is classified as an organic solvent since it is a carbon-based substance that can break down other substances.
What Makes Methanol Effective?
Not only is this product useful for breaking things down, but its nickname is also “the wood alcohol”. This interesting name stems from the distillation of wood. Distillation is the process of slowly heating and recooling a substance in order to purify it. When this distillation is done with wood, methanol is produced. The following are some of the properties of this chemical that make it an effective solvent.
Properties
- Colorless
- Liquid
- Volatile
- Miscible in water
- Sweet odor
- Poisonous liquid
- Fuel
- Wood alcohol
This substance is useful in a wide range of applications; however, it is a highly poisonous biochemical even though it is used in many different applications. The interesting thing about this simple alcohol, however, is that you can find how it functions as a biochemical building block for many products that are on the market today. Furthermore, you can also find how it functions as a fuel for renewable energy.
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