Question

An industrial method of preparation of methanol is:
A. Catalytic reduction of carbon monoxide in presence of $ZnO-Cr_{2}O_{3}$
B. By reacting methane with steam at 900℃ with a nickel catalyst.
C. By reducing formaldehyde with lithium aluminum hydride.
D.By reacting formaldehyde with aqueous sodium hydroxide solution

Answer 1

Hint: Methanol is also called wood spirit and is widely available and used in lots of products such as plastics, paint, fuel, etc. It was originally obtained by the destructive distillation of wood. The chemical formula of methanol is $C{H_3}OH$.

Complete step by step answer: Nowadays methanol is commercially prepared by the catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide or water gas. In this process, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen is passed over a catalyst consisting of an oxide of chromium, zinc, and copper at 573-673K and under 200-atmosphere pressure to form methanol.
${\text{CO + 2}}{{\text{H}}_{\text{2}}}\xrightarrow[{{\text{573 - 673K,200 - 300atm}}}]{{{\text{CuO - ZnO - C}}{{\text{r}}_{\text{2}}}{{\text{O}}_{\text{3}}}}}{\text{C}}{{\text{H}}_{\text{3}}}{\text{OH}}$
The starting material, i.e. CO and H2 are obtained either from water gas or by partial oxidation of methane.
So, the correct answer is “Option A”.

Additional Information:
There are various uses of methanol includes:
-It is used as a solvent for paints, varnishes, and celluloid, etc.
-It is used to manufacture formaldehyde which is used as a preservative for the biological specimen.
-It is also used for denaturing ethyl alcohol .i.e. to make it unfit for drinking purposes. Denatured alcohol is known as methylated alcohol.
-It is used as an antifreeze for automobile radiators.
-It is used for the manufacture of perfumes, drugs, and varnishes.
-It is also used as a substitute for petrol due to its less flammable and higher octane rating than does gasoline.
-It is also used for the manufacture of formaldehyde resin such as Bakelite, melamine-formaldehyde resin, and urea-formaldehyde.

Note: It is highly poisonous and drinking of methanol even in small quantities causes blindness and large quantities may cause death. It is a colorless liquid. It gives all general reactions to alcohol.