Question

Which of the following is wood alcohol?
A. $C{H_3}OH$
B. ${C_2}{H_5}OH$
C. 1- Butanol
D. 2- methyl-1-propanol

Answer 1

Hint: The alcohol which is produced by the destructive distillation of wood is known as wood alcohol and is also known as a wood spirit.

Complete step by step answer: Methanol is known as wood alcohol because originally it is prepared by the destructive distillation of wood. But nowadays it is prepared commercially by the catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide or water gas at 573k-673k and under 200-300 atmosphere pressure. The chemical reaction for the above process is:

$CO + 2{H_2}\xrightarrow[{573 - 673K,200 - 300atm}]{{Cuo - Zno - C{r_2}{O_3}}}C{H_3}OH$

$CO$ and ${H_2}$ are obtained either from water gas or by partial oxidation of methane.
So, the correct answer is “Option A”.

Additional Information:
Methanol is a light, volatile, and colourless liquid with boiling point 373.5k. It is highly poisonous and drinking of it even in small quantities of methyl alcohol causes blindness and large quantities may cause even death.

Note: Methanol is a widely used solvent and some of its uses are:
-It is used as a solvent for paints, varnishes and celluloid etc.
-It is also used for the formation of formaldehyde which is used as a preservative for biological specimens and in the manufacture of formaldehyde resin such as Bakelite, melamine-formaldehyde, urea-formaldehyde etc.
-It is also used for denaturing alcohol that is to make it unfit for drinking purposes. Denatured alcohol is commonly known as methylated spirit.
-It acts as antifreeze for automobile radiators.
-Due to its less flammable and higher octane rating than dose gasoline acts as a substitute for petrol.
-It is also used in manufacture of perfumes and drugs.